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NINETY-NINTH
ANNUAL

CONFERENCE

OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST
OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS

Held in the Tabernacle
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH

April 5, 6, and 7, 1929

With a Fall Report of All
the Discourses

Published by the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Salt Lake City, Utah

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Ninety-Ninth Annual Conference
of the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints

The Ninety-ninth Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints convened in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City,
Utah, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, April 5, 6, and 7, 1929.

The proceedings of the six sessions of the Conference were broad-
cast] by radio for the benefit of the general public.

GENERAL AUTHORITIES OF THE CHURCH PRESENT

Of the First Presidency: Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins and
Charles W. Nibley.

Of the Council of the Twelve : Rudger Clawson, *, George Albert
Smith, George F. Richards, Orson F. Whitney, David O. McKay,
Joseph Fielding Smith, James E. Talmage, Stephen L. Richards, Richard
R. Lyman, and Melvin J. Ballard, f.

Presiding Patriarch : Hyrum G. Smith.

Of the First Council of Seventy : Brigham H. Roberts, J. Golden
Kimball, Rulon S. Wells, Joseph W. McMurrin, Charles H. Hart, Levi
Edgar Young, and Rey L. Pratt.

Of the Presiding Bishopric : Sylvester Q. Cannon, David A. Smith,
and John Wells.

OFFICERS AND OTHER AUTHORITIES PRESENT

Church Historian and Recorder: Joseph Fielding Smith, and the
following assistants : Andrew Jenson, Brigham H. Roberts, %, and
Junius F. Wells.

Presidents of stakes and their counselors were well represented
from the one hundred and one stakes of Zion.

Patriarchs, Bishops of Wards and their counselors, and numerous
high priests, seventies, and elders, from all parts of the Church, were
in attendance. Members of the Board of Education, and general, stake,
and ward officers of the auxiliary organizations were present.

Mission Presidents were in attendance as follows : James H. Mo'yle,
Eastern States ; Noah S. Pond, Northern States ;, Samuel O. Bennion,
Central States ; John G. Allred, North Central States ; Charles H. Hart,
Canada; William R. Sloan, Northwestern States; Charles A. Callis,
Southern States ; Miles L. Jones, East Central States : Elias S. Wood-
ruff, Western States; Joseph W. McMurrin, California; Rey L. Pratt,
Mexico ; Benjamin Goddard, Bureau of Information, Temple Block,
Salt Lake City, Utah.

*Reed Smoot was absent in Washington, D. C.

tjohn A. Widtsoe was absent, presiding over the European Mission.
$A. William Lund was absent, presiding over the British Mission.

GENERAL CONFERENCE

FIRST DAY
MORNING MEETING

The first session of the conference began promptly at 10 o'clock,
Friday morning, April 5th, 1929, at which time the great Tabernacle
auditorium and galleries were well filled with people from all parts
of the Church.

President Heber J. Grant presided.

The hymn, "We thank thee, O God, for a prophet," was sung by
the congregation.

President Hugh B. Brown of the Granite Stake offered the open-
ing prayer.

The congregation sang the hymn, "Guide us, O Thou Great
Jehovah."

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

I rejoice to have the opportunity of again meeting with the Saints
in general conference. I am very grateful for this splendid audience,
considering the inclemency of the weather. I most earnestly pray that
while we are assembled here together the prayer that has been offered
may be answered and we may have a rich outpouring of the Spirit of
the Lord, that those who address us, those who offer prayers and those
who sing for us may be inspired and blessed of our Heavenly Father.

It has been one of the joys of my life to attend, from my childhood
days until the present time, the general conferences of the Church, and
to partake of the remarkable and wonderful blessings that have come
to us from those who have been called upon to speak.

It is customary at our annual conferences to give some information
regarding the condition of the Church financially and otherwise.

MISSIONARY WORK

I rejoice to say that our missionary work all over the world is
progressing favorably, and that from every mission we have earnest
appeals for more missionaries. The work is very great and we do not
have as many laborers as we would like to have, notwithstanding
there are more than 2,000 missionaries out in the world today pro-
claiming the Gospel.

CHURCH EXPENDITURES

The items that I thought would be of special interest to the con-
ference I have prepared :

Stake and Ward Purposes — During the past year the Church has
expended more than $1,200,000 for the erection of ward and stake
buildings. The people themselves have contributed for this same
purpose over $1,000,000.

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

Had the means been available we could have expended as much
more, by responding to all the calls that have come to us for funds
with which to construct church edifices. But inasmuch as the tithes of
the people have not increased in proportion to the applications for
funds (in fact the tithes have increased very little, while the expendi-
tures have increased over $500,000) we have been unable to do all
that we should have liked to do.

Up until about twelve years ago no more than $300,000 in any one
year was ever contributed by the Church to assist in building meeting
houses.

Education — There has been expended more than $900,000 for the
construction and operation of Church schools, seminaries, and the two
institutes that have been erected.

Missions — For the maintenance and operation of missions and for
the erection of places of worship and other buildings in the missions,
there has been expended over $900,000.

Charity — The total expenditure for charity rendered by the Church,
including disbursements from fast offerings, and assistance rendered by
the Relief Societies, is more than $800,000.

Missionary IV ork — Various wards have assisted the missionaries by
contributions of over $100,000, principally for the purpose of sending
them to their fields of labor.

More than 2,000 missionaries have been sustained in the mission
field at the expense of their families, at an average cost per missionary
of at least $40 per month, or $960,000 a year ; to say nothing about the
value of the missionaries' time, which H am sure would be more than
double this amount, as they could earn on an average more than twice
their expenses.

SEMINARIES VERSUS CHURCH SCHOOLS

There are today 12,500 students in our seminaries and 3,800 stu-
dents in our Church schools. It is costing more than twice as much
to support the 3,800 students in the Church schools as it is to support the
12,500 students in the seminaries. It costs over ten times as much per
capita to give the same amount of religious instruction in our Church
schools as is given in our seminaries.

It is only fair to say that the religious instruction given in our
seminaries is equally as extensive and as thorough as that given in
our Church schools. We have appeals from all over the Church, where-
ever Church schools are located, that we do not close these institutions.
The people in each stake feel that their particular school is the one
that ought not to be closed. While we are expending more now and
have done so for the past three years than all the tithes paid by the
people in the various stakes of Zion from Canada to Mexico, it is
an impossibility to further extend our seminary system — which has been
greatly expanded in the last three years — and still continue our Church

GENERAL CONFERENCE

schoo/s. When you stop to reflect that its only costs a little less than
one-tenth as much to educate our young people religiously in the
seminaries as it does in the Church schools you will realize that we
are justified in curtailing our schools and in enlarging our seminaries —
when we can give for the same amount as much if not a little more
religious education to ten people in. a seminary as we can give to one
person in a school. We would be delighted if it were possible not
(inly to keep each and every one of our Church schools operating, but to
have more of them. I am sure that figuratively speaking it breaks the
hearts of the presidency and of each and all of the general authorities
of the Church to close any one of the Church schools. We appreciate
the wonderful labors that have been accomplished and the wonderful
good that has been clone in these schools, but we cannot, without facing
a deficit, continue to expend three or four times as much money for
building meeting houses and Church schools with only a very slight
increase in our tithes.

Because of these facts we would like the people to understand that
in closing Church schools and opening seminaries we shall be able to
give religious instruction to about ten times as many students.

STATISTICAL AND OTHER REPORTS COMPILED FROM THE CHURCH RECORDS

FOR THE YEAR 1928

We have at the present time: stakes in Zion, 101; wards, 938;
independent branches, 74; dependent branches, 36; total wards and
branches in the stakes of Zion, from Canada to Mexico, 1048 ; missions,
27 ; mission branches, 813.

CHURCH GROWTH

Children blessed and entered on the records of the Church

in the stakes and missions 19 223

Children baptized in the stakes and missions 15,073

Converts baptized and entered on the records of the stakes

and missions _ 5 Q40

Number of long-term missionaries from Zion December
31, 1928 194.!

Number of short-term missionaries from Zion, December

31, 1928 IgQ

Number of local missionaries 95

Total number of missionaries on foreign missions 2,197

Number engaged in missionary work in stakes 838

Total missionaries 3 035

Number of missionaries who received training at the Mis-
sionary Home 929

Persons recommended to the temples 51 222

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

SOCIAL STATISTICS

Birth rate, 29.9 per thousand.

Marriage rate, 14.7 per thousand.

Death rate, 7.8 per thousand.

Families owning their own homes, 70 per cent.

These figures speak very well for the Church. The first great com-
mandment of the Lord, given to our firsH parents, was to multiply and
replenish the earth. When it comes to the death rate, we have one
of the lowest of any people, showing that we must be observing the
laws of health — and the laws of health are the laws of God.

I have often said in my public addresses out in the world that when
it comes to vital statistics, such as a high birth rate, a low death rate,
a low insanity rate, a low divorce rate, in fact all the vital statistics that
go to show that a people are a worthy and good people, we are making
no apology to any one upon the face of the earth.

CHANGES IN STAKE AND MISSION OFFICERS SINCE OUR LAST CONFERENCE

William H. Richards has been released as president of the Malad
stake, and Thomas W. Richards appointed to succeed him.

William T. Jack has been released as president of the Cassia stake,
and Charles S. Clark appointed to succeed him.

C. Alvin Orme has been released as president of the Tooele stake,
and Alfred L. Hanks appointed to succeed him.

George A. Little has been released as president of the Oquirrh
stake, and Harry Edward Sutton appointed to succeed him.

William H. Mendenhall has been released as president of the
Bannock stake and M. Ezra Sorensen appointed to* succeed him.

All of these brethren who have been released have labored with
zeal, with energy and with determination for the advancement of the
people in those stakes, and they retire with the love and blessing and
confidence of the General Authorities of the Church.

MISSION PRESIDENTS APPOINTED

A. William Lund has been appointed president of the British
mission.

Heretofore the British mission has been under the direct jurisdic-
tion of the president of the European mission, he presiding over all
of the missions in Europe and also being the actual head of the British
mission. There are now two missions, one presided over by Elder
John A. Widtsoe, which includes all of the missions in Europe, among
them being the British1 mission, presided over by Brother Lund. We
have received very good reports for the brief time since this division
took place.

Samuel Martin has been released as president of the South African
mission, and Don Mack Dalton appointed to succeed him.

Lorenzo W. Anderson has been released as president of the Nor-
wegian mission, and Hyrum D. Jensen appointed to succeed him. Brother
Jensen, I believe, left yesterday for his field of labor. He would have

GENERAL CONFERENCE

liked very much to be here at this conference, but on account of the
early sailing of the steamship, he left yesterday.

Alma G. Burton has been released as president of the Tahitian
mission, and George W. Burbidge appointed to succeed him. Brother
Burton has not yet left for home.

James H. Moyle has been appointed to succeed Brother Henry H.
Rolapp as president of the Eastern States! mission.

Miles L. Jones has been appointed president of the East Central
States mission, a new mission, which includes a part of the territory
heretofore belonging to the Southern States mission, presided over by
Brother Charles A. Callis, and the state of West Virginia formerly
being a part of the Eastern States mission.

New Ward Organisations — Mount Trumbull ward, St. George
stake.

Lincoln ward, Granite stake.

Bishop, who has passed away during the past six mdnths — Frank
R. Smith of the Hillspring ward, Alberta stake.

Mission president zvho has passed aivay during the past six months
— Joseph W. Booth of the Armenian mission.

We regret that the circumtances are such that up to date we have
been unable to secure permission to bring the body of Brother Booth
home, but we expect to secure permission to do so at some later date.

CHURCH INSTITUTES

Speaking of education in our seminaries, we rejoice in the erection
during the past year of an institute at Moscow, Idaho, where the young
Latter-day Saints who are attending the University of Idaho can re-
ceive education religiously. We rejoice that only last Sunday an in-
stitute was dedicated where the young people attending the Agricultural
college at Logan can have the opportunity of receiving religious
training.

IMPORTANCE OF RELIGIOUS TRAINING

One of the outstanding characters in the United States of Amer-
ica is Honorable James J. Davis, Secretary of Labor. He has this to
say regarding religious training:

"Morality needs a religious base. A man can not be truly moral unless
he is at the same time deeply religious. * * *

"Men may say what they will, but we shall never have a morality that
respects the rights and integrity of others unless our morality has a religious
sanction. To put morality on anything but a religious basis is to build on sand.
It is_ religion that gives vision, strength, inspiration, and without it we are
nothing. * * *

"I have children of my own, and I want them to grow up into men and
women who believe that religion hasi a genuine message for them, as it has
for me. I don't want them to develop into atheists and materialists. If there
is no truth in the teachings of religion that have come down to us, of
what earthly use would life be? If the world were under the control of
blind forces operating without any direction, if there were no plan behind
the creation of the world and man, and if after our little span of life here we

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

were to lie down for eternity in a dreamless sleep, then I do not see what
inspiration life would have for any of us. * * *

"It is the plants we prize that need our care. So at is with the young.
Nobody needs to train his son to be vicious. Let him go without training,
and he will be that of his own accord. But virtue has to be cultivated, and
we can never succeed in that if we let go our hold on religion.

"No nation ever lived and prospered without a religious faith of some
sort. * * *

"No people has ever found a purely intellectual education enough in itself.
A man may be ever so highly cultivated and still be a bad citizen. One of the
greatest scholars of his day, Lord Bacon, took bribes as a judge on the bench,
and eventually found himself a prisoner in the Tower of London. Probably
the poet went too far in his indictment, but we see the wit in the judgment
he passed on the man, as 'Brightest, wisest, meanest of mankind.' * * *

"As institutions where facts may be learned, our schools are worthy
of all praise. But facts are not everything. They are not even the most
important things in life. One might pack into his head every fact to be
known, and yet never even glimpse the kingdom of truth.

"I would plead for a conception of education large enough to take into
itself everything that deepens the human consciousness, that inspires the
human soul, and gives one a vision of the eternities. This, a moral education,
to use the word in the highest sense, will do. As every historian can show,
morals divorced from religion are sorry affairs without any point. But
morals not so divorced can rise to the height that religion itself has attained."

STATEMENT BY COOLIDGE

Ex- President Coolidge made the following statements:

"Our doctrine of equality and liberty, and humanity and charity, comes
from our belief in the brotherhood of man through the fatherhood of God.
The whole foundation of enlightened civilization, in government, in society,
and in business, rests on religion. Unless our people are thoroughly in-
structed in its great truths they are not fitted either to understand our in-
stitutions or to provide them with adequate support. For our independent
colleges and secondary schools to be neglectful of their responsibilities in this
direction is to turn their graduates loose with simply an increased capacity
to prey upon each other. Such a dereliction of duty would put in jeopardy
the whole fabric of society. For our chartered institutions of learning to
turn back to the material and neglect the spiritual would be treason, not only
to the cause for which they were founded but to man and to God."

"We cannot remind ourselves too often that our right to be free, the
support of our principles of justice, our obligations to each other in our
domestic affairs, and our duty to humanity abroad, the confidence in each
other necessary to support our social and economic relations, and finally,
the fabric of our government itself, all rest on religion.

"Its importance cannot be stressed too often or emphasized too much."

THE VALUE OF THE GOSPEL

I believe that I can say without fear of contradiction that we as a
people demonstrate by our actions that our religion is dearer to us and
of more actual value than is the religion of any other people in the
world to them. Where can you find a people, 2,000 persons of whom are
giving their time and their attention without money and without price,
laboring to bring others to a knowledge of the Gospel ? I am sure that
we realize the force of the statement made in that wonderful and re
markable revelation given to David Whitmer and Oliver Cowdery:

GE Mi RA I CONFERENCE

"Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;

"For, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh; where-
fore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent and come
unto him.

"And he hath risen again from the dead, that he might bring all men
unto him, on conditions of repentance.

"And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth!

"Wherefore, you are called to cry repentance unto this people.

"And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance
unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be
your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!

"And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought
unto me in the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you
should bring many souls unto me!"

We are bringing many souls unto a knowledge of the Gospel. I re-
joice beyond all the power which God has given me to express my
feelings, that the Latter-day Saints in every land and in every clime,
all over the wide world wherever the Gospel has gone, have been
blessed with a testimony, with a knowledge of the divinity of the
work in which we are engaged. I never have heard and never expect
to hear the song, "We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet, to Guide Us
in These Latter Days," but what my heart goes out in gratitude to
God for choosing that wonderful young man, Joseph Smith, to restore
to the earth again the Gospel of the Lord 'Jesus Christ, the plan of life
and salvation. I rejoice that the missionaries! who have been going out
to proclaim this Gospel for ninety-nine long years have gone out under
the inspiration of the living God, that they have declared that which they
knew to be true; and that in every nation under heaven where the
Gospel has gone, honest men and honest women, in answer to. their
own prayers and their supplications to God, have been blessed with the
light and the knowledge of the Gospel, and of the divinity of the mission
of Joseph Smith the prophet.

May God bless us during our assembly here today, and inspire all
those who shall speak to us, is my humble prayer and I ask it in the
name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

PRESIDENT ANTHONY W. IVINS

1 desire first to express the sincere gratitude which I feel that I
as well as all of you who are assembled this morning, have been pre-
served through another year. That we are privileged to assemble here,
as it is our custom to do, to commemorate the organization of the
Church, to be informed regarding its development and growth by the
teachings of the Gospel which we receive in these general gatherings of
the Church. It is for this purpose that we meet together.

PROTECTION FROM STORM

•It is a stormy day. Looking out of the window to the south before
getting up it appeared that the storm had developed into a blizzard.

We thank the Lord for the rain and snow. We thank him for

PRESIDENT ANTHONY IV. IVINS

clouds, as we do for sunshine, and know that as long as we continue to
put our trust in him he will watch over and protect us. The mantle
which is drawn about us through the influence of the Gospel of Christ
will protect us from the storms of the world, just as this comfortable
building does this morning from the storms which are raging without.

MISREPRESENTATION

From the organization of the Church to the present it has been cus-
tomary for unbelievers to assail the Church until it has become a thing
to be expected by us. Abortive efforts have been made to explain
the reason for its existence. It has been ridiculed, it has been criticised
by both unlearned and learned men. It has been referred to as an or-
ganization not Christian in its character. It has been referred to as an
organization which perverts the doctrines of Christ as they are taught in
the Bible. In fact, it would appear that there is no pretext that can
be thought of which has not been resorted to in order that the true
origin and purpose of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
might be misrepresented to the world. And it is strange, almost in-
comprehensible, that these statements which have been made, the reason-
ings which have been offered, have been accepted as true by intelligent,
thoughtful people.

ONE OF THE OBJECTIONS

One of the objections commonly raised is that the Latter-day Saints
accept the Book of! Mormon, as we declare in our Articles of Faith, as
coming from God. This book has been referred to as the "Golden
Bible." It has been referred to as a book which the Latter-day Saints
place before the Holy Scriptures as they are contained in the Bible.
It is now nearly one hundred years since the book was published, and
I do not know of a single argument, of a single theory, that has been
advanced which has not been successfully met. I desire during the short
time at my disposal to refer to some df these objections and call your
attention to certain developments which have come under my observa-
tion during the past few years that tend to establish the divine au-
thenticity of the book and the things which it teaches.

I am going to read first, in justification of the statement which I
have just made, froim a book that I now hold in my hand. It is en-
titled, "Sketches of Mexico," and is written by John W. Butler, a
man whom I knew, a man who was in Mexico during my early expe-
rience as a missionary in that country. This is what he says in re-
viewing the origin of the Mexican people :

"The theory found in the Book of Mormon hardly merits mention. The
story is given in Bancroft's Native Races, vol. v, and covers five pages (p.
96, et seq.) It is rather romantic and reaches from the Tower of Babel,
soon after which it is claimed the first Mormons came to this continent, down
to September 22, 1827, when Joseph Smith removed the buried book from
the 'hill Cumorah, Ontario County, N. Y. The whole story is not only a
prententious fraud but also a blasphemous perversion of Old Testament
history.

GENERAL CONFERENCE

"The learned John Fiske in his recent valuable work, 'The Discovery of
America,' (Boston, 1892), well says: Tt is extremely difficult for an imposter
to concoct a narrative without making blunders that can easily be detected by
a critical scholar. For example, the Book of Mormon, in the passage cited,
in supremely blissful ignorance introduces oxen and sheep, as well as the
knowledge of smelting iron, into pre-Columbian America.' " (Vol. 1, p. 179.)

HIS OWN ARGUMENT

Undoubtedly no one can deny John Fiske's intelligence. No one
can deny his good citizenship. No one can deny the sincerity of what
he writes, but it would perhaps be not entirely inappropriate for me
to call attention to his own argument :

"It is extremely difficult for an imposter to concoct a narrative without
making blunders that can easily be detected by a critical scholar."

,'It is equally difficult for a critic to reach proper conclusions iiTdjs-
cussing a subject upon which he is not well informed.

So I want to take John Fiske for just a few moments to some of the
recent developments which touch upon the very things that he refers
to and treats as impossible.

THE USE OF STEEL

I hold in my hand a story taken from the Tanuary number of
"World's Work" a year ago. It is written by A. Hyatt Verrill, one of
the foremost of our archaeologists. The article is headed "The Pompeii
of Ancient America," telling of a vast city on the Isthmus of Panama
which was destroyed centuries before Christ. He says :

"We believe that this article stands unique among accounts of modern
archaeological discoveries. It is the story of an American city which flour-
ished and probably was destroyed by a volcano centuries before Pompeii
existed. We are finding tnat America is not so young after all Moreover
the veteran explorer for the Museum of the American Indian, who dis-
covered this ancient city and who writes this article, believes that he has
made another interesting discovery— that steel implements were used in
America centuries ago-a theory whicli was scoffed at until iron was found
in King Tut-Ankh-Amon s tomb in Egypt, dating back to about 1350 B. C."

The entire article is exceedingly interesting to a student of the
Book of Mormon. It is elaborately illustrated. I cannot take time
to read the many thugs which have a direct bearing upon the Book
of Mormon, but I ask your indulgence while I read the following-

V errill says : fe "

"I am thoroughly convinced that these people as well as manv nth^r
prehistoric races, possessed iron or steel tools,Pand T do not know of a sinele
argument or fact to disprove this. The fact that no i?on or steel tools have
ever been found proves nothing. Iron is the most perishable of 'metals and
except under most unusual and peculiar conditions, all traces o ?snTal iron or
steel tools would disappear completely in a few centuries H h ?T
aeologists will scoff at this theorv anH n™£ ' I !l es:. No. doub* arch~
as well as laymen have a habit of scoffinT^tT ,dea but-, scientist«

forthcoming to place them in the wrong" th6°ry Untl1 pr°of is

PRESIDENT ANTHONY W. IV INS

He then refers to the discovery of steel in the tomb of Tut-Ankh-
Amon and continues:

"Indeed, less than two years ago I was scoffed at for suggesting that an
entirely new and unknown culture of great antiquity had existed in Panama,
but we now have undeniable proof/ of the fact. Moreover, at a depth of five
and one-half feet below the surface, at the temple site, among broken pottery
and imbedded in charcoal, I found a steel or hardened iron implement. The
greater portion is almost completely destroyed by corrosion, but the chisel
shaped end is in good condition. It is so hard that it is scarcely touched by a
file and will scratch glass, and with such an implement it would be a simple
matter to cut and carve the hardest stone."

He then proceeds to say that the stone work which he has uncovered
there could not have been accomplished with anything but a hardened
steel implement.

Thus, one of the objections which Mr. Fiske expresses in the
book from which I have just read is disposed of. Joseph Smith had no
knowledge of this, but he told us one hundred years ago, or the his-
torian who wrote the Book of Mormon which Joseph Smith translated,
told us that they became expert in the manufacture and use of steel.

ANIMALS OF ANCIENT AMERICA

Again, the objection is made by Mr. Fiske that sheep are referred
to in the Book of Mormon. I do not think that this needs particular
attention. The llama and alpaca of South America are of this species.

Fiske says oxen were referred to. I have in my hand a circular issued
by the Los Angeles County Museum of History, Science and Art. On
page 27 of the book is a picture of the skeleton of an ancient ox, mounted
and complete. If you will go into the museum at Los Angeles, as I
have done, you will see these mounted skeletons. This skeleton is said
to be that of a prehistoric ox the remains of which have been taken
from the asphalt beds near the city, associated with the remains of
many other animals which once existed in America, and are now extinct.

On page twenty-six of the same book is the picture of a skeleton of
a horse, said to differ slightly from our present horse, but fully as large
taken from the same bed. The Book of Mormon tells us that there
were horses and oxen here. This would appear to dispose of that
criticism also.

FINE PEARLS

Another, thing to which my attention has been called, and it has
been very interesting to me, because it helps us in the conclusions reached
in regard to several important matters contained in the Book of Mormon,
is the following: (We are now dealing with a period nearly three
hundred years after the birth of Christ.) The writer tells us:

"And now, in this two hundred and first year there began to be among
them those who were lifted up in pride, such as the wearing of fine pearls,
and of the fine things of the world."

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lie does not refer to diamonds, nor rubies, nor sapphires, but to
pearls. This also has been made a question of ridicule by critics of
the Book of Mormon and the faith of the Latter-day Saints. I have
in my hand a page which I tore from the "Courier-Journal" of Ohio in
1925. 'I wish you could all have it and read it, and also a page from
the "Literary Digest." I can only read the headlines because time will
not permit me to refer to the many interesting things which are con-
tained in it. But this is what the headlines tell us : "America's Ancient
Kings and Their Bushels of Pearls— Skeletons of aj prehistoric family
that ruled the mysterious people who built the mounds near Chillicothe,
Ohio, where they were recently discovered. They are surrounded by
bushels of pearls which evidently formed their burial robes." — "Newest
remarkable discoveries about the Prehistoric People who built the huge
earthen mounds and buried their Kings in Robes of Precious Stones."

I was in communication at this time with a friend in New York,
who is a collector of Indian relics, and probably had one of the largest
individual collections in the United States. He was well acquainted
with the archaelogist who uncovered this remarkable burial place.
The photographs contained in the article the headings of which I have
just read show the form in which the skeletons were found and their
surroundings. The article says that the fragment of clothing which
they wore was. shown to be of very fine quality. But more than all,
this friend of mine said he had some of these pearls in his possession
which had been sent to him, and they were very fine, ranging in size
from a hickory nut to a pin head, all of which had been pierced and
used evidently as ornaments.

WITHOUT KNOWLEDGE OF THE FUTURE

This may be considered a small thing by some- people, but to me
it is very important, because one hundred years ago that account was
written into this record without knowledge of the future, without
knowledge of these developments that are being made by archaeologists
at the present time. I do not know that I can say that these things
tend to strengthen our faith because our faith appears to have been
definite and needs little strengthening, but it is a source of great
satisfaction to us to know that these arguments which have been used,
and used so effectually against the Book of Mormon, are gradually being-
displaced by the actual discoveries which are being made.

THE GOLDSMITH ART

The Book of Mormon is referred to as the Golden Bible of the Mor-
mons, because of the fact that the record was made in reformed Egyp-
tian characters upon plates which were of gold. I have in my hand a
little book published by the Heye Foundation of the American Indian
from which I wish to read a paragraph or two. This book is written
by Saville, one of our foremost students of archaeology. It i« entitled

PRESIDENT ANTHONY W. IVINS

"The Goldsmith's Art in Ancient Mexico." The entire volume is de-
voted to this one subject, and tells us of the expert manner in which
the Mexican Indians handled gold at the time of the cdnquests ; that
the goldsmiths of old Spain, which stood at the head, of the world at
that time, were amazed, and that they employed these Indians to con-
vert the gold which was accumulated by the conquerors of Mexico
into ingots that could be carried back to Spain.

MILLIONS IN GOLD

One of the first Spaniards to visit the coasts of the mainland was
Juan de Grijalva. He left Cuba, coasted along Yucatan and Central
America, and then returned to his starting point. He brought with
him more than one hundred samples, which I have copied from this
book, of ornaments made from gold. This excited the cupidity of the
Spaniards, and other expeditions were immediately sent out for further
investigation. One single article, it could not have been used as an
ornament, undoubtedly having some religious signification, said to have
been as large as a cart wheel, was brought out. It had a weight value
in gold of thirty thousand dollars. Among the things which he brought
were very beautiful representations of animals, of birds, of men, and
other ^things. Prescott declared that there was collected by Cortez and
those who were with him, six million three hundred thousand dollars
worth of gold, the greater part of' which was not used as a circulating
medium, but for the adornment of the person, the representation of
various forms of life, and the religious ideals of the people.

Among other things Montezuma had in his palace in Mexico City,
a room wherein was represented every known bird and animal which
could not be kept alive in the gardens just outside, made from gold, and
said to have been so nearly perfect that it amazed these Spanish ad-
venturers.

PLATES OF GOLD

That is not the particular thing to which I desire to call your at-
tention. Mr. Saville has taken the contents of his book from the old
inventories that are still available, reports which were made to the
kings to whom one-fifth of all the booty which fell into the hands of
the conquerors was sent. The amount not recorded he says no one
can guess. Six million dollars would be but a bagatelle compared with
what we believe was carried away by the conquistadors.

This is the thing which particularly interested me, and to which my
attention was called by Professor Levi Edgar Young. The book that
I hold in my hand is his property. I read from it as follows :

_ "Padre Gay mentions that the Mixtecan Indians 'sold to some European
antiquarians, very thin plates of gold, evidently worked with the hammer
which their ancestors had been able to preserve, and on which were en-
graved ancient hieroglyphics.' "

That is very significant to us, when considered in connection with

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the declaration that the record from which the Book of Mormon was
translated was written upon plates of gold.

A few days ago I received a letter from Dr. John A. Widtsoe who
at present presides over the European mission. Among other things
he says :

"Last fall as I was leaving London I spent an hour in the British
museum almost at random. I entered the large room devoted to oriental
manuscripts. I noticed at once in the first case to the right a series of very
line silver plates, perhaps three inches wide and eight inches long, held to-
gether by a silver ring. The plates were beautifully engraved with char-
acters which the legend said gave Buddha's first sermon. In the next case
was a sheet of extremely thin gold likewise engraved on both sides, which
according to the legend was a letter from one ruler to another."

I thought again, my brethren and sisters, that this is very sig-
nificant. It settles without controversy the fact that gold was used
anciently for plates upon which records were kept. It illustrates clearly
that sheets of metal used for that purpose were held together by rings,
just as the prophet tells us the plates containing the Book of Mormon
were held together.

NOT UNREASONABLE

How reasonable this is when you think of it. We know that gold
is one of the most ductile, one of the moist enduring of metals. We
know that it does not tarnish. You may throw it into a river of muddy
water ; you may bury it in the earth. Go where you will today and
wash from the gravel its grains as >I have done, you will find that they
are always bright. They retain their color. They are recognized at
once. It is one of the softest of metals, not as soft as lead, but nearly
so, and consequently would be a convenient metal upon which to keep a
record. And if that record were especially valuable and sacred to the
people how reasonable it would be that they should keep it upon plates
of gold.

FAMILIARITY WITH THE BOOK REQUIRED

But I must not continue. I call your attention to these facts be-
lieving that they will be interesting to you. I appeal to all of the mem-
bers of the Church to become familiar with the Book of Mormon. I
would that all people, whether they be members of the Church or not,
would familiarize themselves with that work. Not through rumors that
have been circulated in regard to it, not from such statements as are
made by Fiske, which I have read to you— an honest man without doubt,
but misled because of what others had said, not familiar with the book
itself. I would like to apply that same warning that he applies, to myself
and to others, that we must be careful lest we, by writing on subjects
that we do not understand, make the same mistake that he has made.

"It is extremely difficult for an imposter to concoct a narrative without
making blunders."

PRESIDENT ANTHONY W. IVINS

Nothing more true than that was ever said. I paraphrase that state-
ment by saying, it is extremely difficult for a critic to criticise that with
which he is not familiar without making blunders.

Blunders have been made from the time of the publication of the
book until the present, beginning with the old Spaulding Manuscript
story, in the abortive attempts which have been made to account for the
existence of the Book of Mormon, and the organization of the Church,
and it is still being done by men who reside in our own communities,
men who have the facilities at their command by which they may know
the truth.

THE TEACHINGS OF THE BOOK OF MORMON

The Book of Mormon does not replace the Bible. We believe the
Bible to be the word of God insofar as it is correctly translated. I
could preach a sermon upon that subject and satisfy any reasonable
man that it is the only correct statement that could be made. We also
believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God. It is a Christian
book. The title page itself appeals to people to come unto Christ — 'Jew,
Gentile, bond and free — that salvation may be obtained through him.
The last chapter in the book makes the same appeal. You can scarcely
open a page that does not bear witness to the fact that Christ is the
Redeemer of the world, the Son of God, our Savior, our Elder Brother,
our Advocate with the Father. He stands between us and the Father
to plead our cause. Every message that comes to us from the Fathei
comes through the Son. He came to do the will of the Father. He came
to show us the personality of the Father, for he said he was in the
exact image of his person.

So I say one by one criticisms which have been made regarding the
Book of Mormon are falling by the way through the investigation of
scientists who understand their business. I thank the Lord for them and
that which they are undertaking to do. I have never had any fear
that a thing would be discovered to disprove the truths contained in
this book.

We must be careful in the conclusions that we reach. The Book
of Mormon teaches the history of three distinct peoples, or two peoples
and three different colonies of people, who came from the old world
to this continent. It does not tell us that there was no one here before
them. It does not tell us that people did not come after. And so if
discoveries are made which suggest differences in race origins, it can very
easily be accounted for, and reasonably, for we do believe that other
people came to this continent. A thousand years had elapsed from the
time the Book of Mormon closed until the discovery of America, and
we know that other people came to America during that period.

NO DEFINITE SOLUTION

There is a great deal of talk about the geography of the Book
of Mormon. Where was the land of Zarahemla? Where was the

If.

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City of Zarahemla? and other geographic matters. It does not make
any difference to us. There has never been anything yet set forth
thai definitely settles that question. So the Church says we are just,
wailing until we discover the truth. All kinds of theories have been
advanced. 1 have talked with at least half a dozen men that have
found the very place where the City of Zarahemla stood, and not-
withstanding the fact that they profess to be Book of Mormon students,
they vary a thousand miles apart in the places they have located. We
do not offer any definite solution. As you study the Book of Mormon
keep these things in mind and do not make definite statements concerning
things that have not been proven in advance to be true.

God bless you, my brethren and sisters, keep us all in the faith,
and make it possible for us to withstand the assaults of the world,"
for they are coming just as they have come. They will come with
greater force. Lucifer is not dead. He is opposed to Christ, our
Lord. He has been opposed to him and fought him for the dominion
of this earth since he was cast down to it, and the battle is not yet
won. It will become fiercer and fiercer, but there is no doubt in regard
to the ultimate termination. Christ will prevail. He will rule over this
earth, the right of which he won by the shedding of his blood, and
redemption will come to his covenant people. Every word spoken
by the prophets inspired of God, as it applies to this land, to this
people, and to this great dispensation, the greatest of all time, will be
fulfilled. I bear witness of it, through Jesus Christ. Amen.

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

One great difficulty that we have always had in our conferences is
to find sufficient time to hear from all whom we would Hke to have
speak here. We will ask some of our missions presidents to speak briefly
this morning, and ask that they occupy not to exceed ten minutes.

ELDER SAMUEL O. BENNION

President of the Central States Mission

I sincerely trust that the spirit of the Lord may lead my thoughts
at this time.

The principles of the Gospel as taught by the Church of Jesus
Christ appeal to me ; they are in strict accord with the holy scriptures ;
they are conclusive evidence to me that this Church is in harmony with
that established by our Lord and Master in the meridian of time In
my experience I have not found any man or set of men who have
successfully assailed any of the principles of the Gospel revealed to the
Prophet Joseph Smith a century ago. During that period of time the
Church has taught many glorious truths— among others, that our Eter-

ELDER SAMUEL 0. BEN N ION

nal Father has a body of flesh and bones ; that men lived before they
came into this world, in an ante-mortal state, where they developed
under the inspiration and power of God, and where prophets were
chosen and ordained. No sect or party of men has been able to prove
these doctrines untrue.

On the other hand, I have listened hundreds of times to young men
from the stakes of Zion, who have come into the world to preach the
Gospel, proclaiming the same doctrines which were taught by the early
elders of the Church. These young men have never heard these early
sermons, they have never had an opportunity to read them, but they
have taught the same principles and delivered almost verbatim the same
sermons by the same power. This fact bears testimony to me that the
Divine Teacher who taught the elders of this Church in the beginning
is in the earth today teaching the children of men through the priest-
hood of the Son of God.

The power of i the Holy Ghost is in the earth ; God our Eternal
Father rules and reigns ; he governs and controls the destinies of men
according to their obedience to his laws. The Savior of the world is
guarding the interests of his Church and it shall stand in the earth to be
here when he shall come in his own due time.

Men and women by the score Have been gathered out from among
the congregations of the earth and have borne testimony through the
inspiration and power that God gives to baptized believers, that this
work is true. Hundreds and thousands of copies of the Book of Mor-
mon have been printed and distributed by our missionaries, and men and
women have come into the Church through the divine testimony taught
within the pages of that holy record, which record is a history of the
hand-dealings of God with the children of men who lived on this Amer-
ican continent. Tt has been assailed again and again but unsuccessfully.

I glory in the work of God. There is nothing in the world that is
of more interest than the teachings of the Gospel ; nothing that will
make men and women happier and bring them closer to our Father.

I am glad to be able to report to you the success of our mission, the
Central States mission. The elders there and the sisters are happy in
their work, and they are developing the testimony that came into the
world with them, that will make them a power in this world. They
will be the means of bringing many others into the Church. It is the
work of God. I thank our Eternal Father for the light that he has
given me, for the testimony that he has given me, for the privilege
I have had of learning and teaching the principles of the Gospel to
men and women in the earth and of being associated with holy men
of God who bear his priesthood, his power and his authority, as leaders
and prophets in the dispensation of time in which we live. Tt has been
my salvation.

I pray God that he may continue to give light and truth to his
children, that we may obey the inspiration that comes to us and glorify
his name to the end ; in the name of Jesus. Amen.

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ELDER JAMES H. MOYLE

President of the Eastern States Mission

It is my prayer that I may be able to occupy the short time
allotted, in saying something that will be appropriate and profitable.
It will be fifty years next July since, as a young boy, I went on a mission
to the Southern States. I was reminded, by what President Grant read
from the book of Doctrine and Covenants, of the joy that comes into
one's life with the knowledge that he has been the means of bringing
one honest soul to a knowledge of the truth. That truth and promise
has come more forcibly to my mind than ever before while on my
present mission. I have been reminded of the good souls to whom I
carried the gospel message in my youth, and who went down with me
into the waters of baptism; whose families are today splendid, honored
Latter-day Sairits, surrounded with greater comfort, With greater
blessings than they would have possibly enjoyed where I found them.

The Eastern States mission is in excellent condition. A wonder-
ful work is being done. Although the people generally are not so much
interested in religion, yet there are many honest souls who may be
reached, and wonderful possibilities exist in that mission.

There is one thing in particular to which I desire to call the atten-
tion of the presiding authorities of the Church, and a condition which I
would have the mothers and fathers and the bishops of wards consider,
though it may not be my prerogative to call attention to it particularly.
That is the fact that in the Eastern States mission there are nine of
the greatest educational institutions of America, great universities and
almost innumerable colleges, and smaller universities, to which the young
people from Utah and surrounding states, are going to obtain an
education. I find that few if any of these young people carry with them
transfers of their membership in the Church to the branches where they
attend school. There may be some, but I do not know of any who do.
What is the result? In each of the great university towns, excepting
Cornell and Princeton, there are organized branches of the Church with
splendid men and women carrying on a great work. These young
people are not only needed there, but they need the assistance and the
contact with these organizations. 'I find that many of them never attend
any branch meetings or participate in any of the activities of the Church.
As a rule the meetings are held in humble places, ill-favored physically,
but blessed spiritually. These young people go to school and they say :
"Well I am here for a few years, and I want to devote myself solely
to_ my studies." Then I find again others, a few, who have contact
with these branches of the Church, who associate with the elders, the
missionaries and branch officers; and what is the result? They are
cultivating and developing spirituality as well as intellectuality. Some of
these young people will come home better Latter-dayi Saints than when
they left their parents. T cannot help but refer to one as; an illustrious

ELDER JAMES H. MOYLE

example. He came from the Eleventh Ward of this city, young Df.
Leroy Alvin Wirthlin, a graduate of Harvard University, who is doing
interne work in Boston. He actively associated himself with the mis-
sionaries and members of the Boston branch, and has done everything
in his power, while at school, to promote the work of the Lord. He
has some additional or post graduate work to do, which only occupies a
portion of his time ; the balance of his time is spent in active missionary
work. What is the result today ? Without being called upon a mission,
he is taking the place of a missionary, working with a missionary, de-
voting very largely all his spare time (and they all have spare time), dur-
ing the few months that it is necessary for him to remain there. All the
missionaries point to him as an illustration of what can be accomplished.
He is using his exceptional qualities and efficiency in assisting in this
great work of saving souls. He thoroughly enjoys the thrill that he re-
ceives from his contact with the missionaries and from the good he
accomplishes.

'I am reminded of the statement made to me by Presiding Bishop
Cannon, that there will be an effort made to have bishops transfer the
membership of our people, not only students, but all of our members
who go east for employment or education or other purposes, when they
are to remain away a year or more. By thus transferring their member-
ship to our branches we have an opportunity of knowing these people. I
found that the president of the Massachusetts district and the president
of the branch of the Church there, did not even know young men who
came from the very best of Latter-day Saint families here, who had
been in Harvard for a year or two. They did not know they were
there. What is the result? They associate themselves with stu-
dents and friends who are not of our faith. They live in an atmosphere
foreign to the Gospel. They breathe that atmosphere and it gradually
becomes a part of them. We must work in the Gospel of Jesu9 Christ,
if we are to progress and hold fast to the faith. If we stop using any
of our limbs, what is the result? My arm, if unused long enough,
would not perform its normal functions. It would wither and become
useless. Just as we would lose the use of our limbs by non-use just
so with the Latter-day Saints who cease to act as such, or to have contact
with those who enjoy the Spirit of the Gospel. It matters not how well
favored they may have been, if they cease to have contact with Latter-
day Saints, if they cease to perform the duties that they can perform,
and separate themselves from the Church and its associations, they lose
the faith ; and many of our young people, I find, in the East, have
apparently lost their faith. One young man to whom I spoke recently,
the vice-president of one of the large corporations of the East, who has
been there a number of years, never attends Church. His wife is
the daughter of a bishop in the Church, his grandfather was one of
the pioneers of forty-seven. I asked him why he did not attend.
"Well," he said, "I am so busy." That I find to be the statement gen-
erally. I said, "Has the faith of your father and mother faded out com-
pletely?" He said, "I can't say that." His mother is a splendid worker

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in the Relief Society. Then I said to him : "Can we not induce you to
come here and lend the strength of your personality, your reputation
and standing, to help this little branch of the Church?" Think of
what he could accomplish by spending a few hours with the saints on
Sunday. Just before I left New York I was informed that there were
fifteen doctors from Utah— and 1 suppose that means Idaho and these
surrounding states — Latter-day Saints, practicing their profession in
New York and its environs, fifteen of them, most of whom pay very
little attention to Church work. We have many members in those great
business and educational centers in almost every vocation in life. The
great commercial, industrial and manufacturing industries of the East
employ many of our people. Some of them are prominent professors
and instructors in the great educational institutions. Some are in
leading law offices. There is a migration which I think has been over-
looked, from the West to the East. A comparative few of our people
who have been reared here and who have been East long, are active
in the Church. All, including our merchants, business men, and our
young people who go East for various purposes, know of the oppor-
tunities for entertainment and amusement ; they all find ample and
abundant time for amusement. Too often they feel that they must in
that time miss nothing, even the vicious and degenerating, and they for-
get and ignore that which is more vital and important, the Spirit of God.
They go there feeling that they are relieved from restraint. They go
there frequently not intending to stay, but they find employment and
hundreds of them are there. More of them are there whose names are
not upon the records of the Church than those who have their names
upon the records. I importune the fathers and mothers and the bishops
of the Church to see that these Church members have their records
transferred, that we may be able to work with them. They can be trans-
ferred back when they come home. I will be glad to have parents
correspond with me and cooperate with them. The General Electric
Company has quite a number of our young men employed as engineers.
For example, I think there are six of such at Schenectady, occupying
responsible positions. Some of them are faithful Latter-day Saints.
In Philadelphia, we have a great many doctors as well as others.
Hundreds are in Washington. All these young people need the watch-
ful care of parents and they need to be kept in contact with the Church,
so that they will not drift away. Many of the choicest blood of Israel
are drifting away through lack of contact with the Church. It is due,
to some extent, to the fact that their parents are not sufficiently interested
or advised.

_ Then we have another interesting situation. The German and
Swiss saints, many of whom are hastening their departure from Europe
because of changes soon to take effect in the immigration law, and
finding it much easier and cheaper to stop in New York, are locating
there. They think there are better opportunities for employment there
also. They are coming every month. We anticipate something like two
hundred will be coming within the next two months. We have several

ELDER JAMES H. MOYLE

hundred of these saints in the Brooklyn branch. There are a goodly
number of them in the Manhattan branch and also in Union City.
All these things present a problem that is worthy of serious thought.

I would like to make an appeal to prominent men and women of the
Church who go to New York, that in place of spending all their time
seeking amusement, they go to the branch meetings of the Church and
lend the strength of their personality and their presence to help us
build up the work of the Master, in which we are engaged. While we
do not have sufficient numbers for a stake of Zion there now, we have
the intelligence, the personality and an abundance of it, and I believe
it will be but a short time before we will be ready to organize a stake
in this greatest of all commercial centers of the world ; the unquestioned
metropolis of the world, where we should have more adequate facilities
for carrying on this great work. Nevertheless it is progressing, and
nothing can stay it.

I believe I have occupied my time ; but there is one thing to
which I will refer ; that is in connection with the Book of Mormon.
It has been to me a source of interesting study throughout my life. For
many years I have been a member of the American Anthropological
Society and the Archaeological Society, chiefly because of my interest
in the Book of Mormon. During the war, it was my privilege to become
very well acquainted and frequently to have luncheon with Doctor
Spinden of the Peabody Museum of Boston, a professor of Archaeology
in Harvard, and also Mr. Morley, the leading archaeologist of America,
in making explorations in Central America. The latter has been fi-
nanced for about twenty years by the Carnegie Institute of Wash-
ington ; has spent as much as ten years in excavating the ruins
of Copan. He has written voluminously. He has written one book of
about a thousand pages on the explorations of that ancient but hidden
city of Copan. Doctor Spinden, the leading authority on the subject,
in the presence of Mr. Morley and myself, declared that he has made a
special study of the manufacturing of cloth in ancient America, and he
said that without question the ancient Peruvians had attained a higher
degree of perfection in the manufacture of cloth than any other nation
of their time. Dr. Morley seemed to concur in the fact. Sot perfect
and complete had it been developed that nothing since has exceeded
the skill and fineness that they demonstrated. If you will read in last
month's "Art and Archaeology," the leading archaeological journal of
the United States, on the front page, in the first paragraph, the leading
article of that journal, you will find that it states that the cultural
development of the aboriginal inhabitants in Central America, prior to
Columbus, was equal to that of any nation of their time; that Babylon
and Egypt did not exceed the culture that has been discovered in the
ancient ruins of this continent. That culture and advancement did not
exist in the days of Columbus. It was found in the ruins they left.
Only the Book of Mormon tells the whole story.

It was presented to the world, before explorations of ancient cities
of America had been made, when little or nothing had been written

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about the subject in English, by a boy twenty-four years of age,
whose life had been spent on the frontier, a mere backwoodsman, un-
educated, always existing in and surrounded by poverty and adversity,
having no contact with educated men or libraries. Its pages reveal to the
world a detailed history of many nations, various peoples, great wars,
the lives of good and great men, as well as wicked ones, the birth
and growth of governments, nations, religions and civilizations. It
presents the Gospel in its fulness and contains glorious teachings and
prophetic predictions which are being fulfilled. Contrast that achieve-
ment with the results of the life work of the greatest scientific archaeo-
logical American explorer of our time, backed by Carnegie millions,
who can only tell a small part of what happened in a few cities of a
small section of Central America. The contrast is so striking that the
Book of Mormon can only be admired because a hundred years of fierce
opposition and effort at exposure have not affected it. And now it is
read by the thousands, where it was only read by the hundreds a few
years ago. Has not the Lord indeed taken the weak things of the
world to confound the wisdom of the great and the wise?

My brethren and sisters, the thrill of being a servant of God,
carrying his message to the world, the preaching of the Gospel, has
stirred my soul. My whole heart is in this work, and while my
physical comfort is not what it was at home, while my physical sur-
roundings are not so comfortable, I do bear testimony to the fact
that I never enjoyed myself more than when I suffered privation and
even hunger as well as the brutal treatment of mobs, while on a mission
in the Southern States in the days of my early youth. I was in the
adjoining state to the one where the martyred James Standing suffered
death, and where President Clawson was condemned to death by a
ruthless mob, but was miraculously saved. I went through the expe-
riences of that time and never enjoyed myself more, notwithstanding
the hardships, for we traveled almost entirely on foot and without
purse or scrip. To the stranger it would appear impossible, but the
joy that came to me at that time has come back to me in this mission.
It is priceless, and I am trying to duly sense the responsibility. I
believe, and I expect as firmly as I know that £ am here, that the
joy and the pleasure of my contact with those splendid young people
with whom I am laboring, will be such that the blessings of God will
flow from it and will last throughout my remaining days, as a com-
pensation and a joy that nothing else can give. That I may be the
means of accomplishing some more good in the mission field and
enjoy the blessing promised in the revelation read by President Grant
is the greatest desire of my heart, in Jesus' name. Amen

ELDER CHARLES A. CALLIS

President of the Southern States Mission

The President of the Church, in his address this morning, declared
that the missionaries went forth preaching that which they knew to
be true. I testify to the truth of this statement. The Lord says in a
revelation contained in the Doctrine and Covenants, that the power is in
them, referring to the men who should preach his glorious word. When
the father of John Wesley was dying, he said to his famous son: "It is
the inward witness, John, that sustains us in the knowledge of God."
This Gospel is being preached in the power and demonstration of the
Holy Ghost. The richest heritage that young people can possess in
going into the world is to have the Holy Spirit as their abiding! com-
panion.

A young man, living near Salt Lake City, left for a mission in
the Southern States a few years ago. Before he left he said to
his mother: "If I do not receive a testimony before I have been in
the mission one month, I am going to return home." The mother
sweetly answered : "My son, you have a testimony. My prayers will
ascend unto God that you will be made conscious of that testimony
before you have been in the mission field a month." The young man
was put to labor in the Georgia conference. Three weeks after he
arrived there, he and his companion were chased by a mob of angry
men. The elders discarded their mission grips. They found that their
coats impeded their flight, and they threw them aside; but when they
had outdistanced their pursuers this young man who had told his mother
he would return home within a month if he did not receive a testimony
of the truth of the Gospel, shook his fist in the direction of the mob and
said: "I know this Gospel is true." But it took a mob to make him
conscious of his testimony. — "Sweet are the uses of adversity."

A few days ago I received a telegram from a bishop in Zion
stating that an elder's mother had died, and he desired that I should
break the sad news to the young man. I took the young man to dinner :
told him of the hardships, the griefs and the sorrows that had come, to
many missionaries. When I thought I had him at least partly prepared
to hear the sad news, I said : "My son, your mother has passed away."
He wept as only missionaries can do, laboring under that great sorrow,
and I wept with him. His mother, on her death-bed, had made the
request that her son fill his mission. The young missionary said : "Don't
be too kind to me. I am afraid I will get homesick. I am going to
fulfil my mother's wishes."

Brethren and sisters, did not that woman have the inward witness?
Did her faith spring from a gospel that is not of God? The mission
of her life, the mission of the Church burned in her heart, and she
wanted to be one of God's children fulfilling his glorious purposes in
her earth life. One cannot laugh away a statement like that. A court

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of law will accept a dying statement in proof of the case under con-
sideration. Is Oliver Cowdery's testimony, is David Whitmer's testi-
mony, is Martin Harris' testimony to the truth of the Book of Mormon
true ? We know by the power of the Holy Ghost that those testimonies
are true. It is my firm belief that this sainted mother, who! upon her
death-bed made the request that her son fill his mission — and she is
only one of many who have made this request — is an angel of God,
and that before she breathed her last she was an angel of God. I don't
believe it takes death to transform men and women into angels of our
Father. Her spirit went to the God who gave it, a blessed woman, one
among the multitude of the mothers) of Israel.

II pray God to bless us. Brethren and sisters, if you will have
your children baptized when they reach the age of eight years, they will
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, under the hands of the authorized
servants of God, to be an eternal abiding companion to them ; and
though they wander from the path, though they grow indifferent and
sometimes tread the wrong path, it is my firm belief — and unshaken
testimony, that the prayers of the fathers and mothers in Israel (as
did the prayers of Alma's father), will reach their sons and daughters
in the hour of their direst need, and this witness of the Holy Ghost
will prompt them to return to the faith of their fathers and mothers. I
bear testimony that the power of the Holy Ghost attends this Church, in
the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

The hymn, "O Ye Mountains High," was sung by the congregation.
The benediction was pronounced by President Henry H. Blood of
the North Davis Stake.

The conference adjourned until 2 o'clock p. m.

AFTERNOON MEETING

The meeting commenced promptly at 2 o'clock p. m.

President Heber J. Grant presided and announced that the con-
gregation would join in singing the hymn, "Do what is Right."

After the singing, the opening prayer was offered by President
Joseph M. Holt of the West Jordan Stake.

The congregation sang the hymn, "High on the Mountain Top."

PRESIDENT RUDGER CLAWSON

My brethren and sisters, I was very much edified at the morning
meeting. The instructions given and the testimonies borne were
thorough and spirited. It was an extremely enjoyable meeting. I trust
that the Spirit of the Lord will be with us this afternoon to inspire what
may be; said and to give the congregation an understanding concerning
matters pertaining to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

WITNESSES WHO TESTIFY CONCERNING GOD'S WORK

I am quoting now from Second Corinthians, 13th chapter, 1st verse :
"In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be estab-
lished."

We understand very well that in the courts of the land, when cases
are brought forward and a verdict is to be rendered, if the matter can
be established by two or three witnesses who speak under oath, it is
regarded as a very strong case. And so it is in relation to matters
pertaining to the Church and Kingdom of God. If those things that
are claimed are sustained by two or three or more witnesses it becomes
a strong case indeed.

In respect to the things which God puts forth regarding his work,
he usually leaves the world without excuse by furnishing an abundance
of evidence in the matter of witnesses. That is peculiarly the case in
respect to the Gospel of Jesusi Christ. We have very strong witnesses
concerning the' great work in which we are engaged, in the standard
works of the Church. There is the Holy Bible, King James' translation,
one of the standard works of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. The truths set forth in the Bible are greatly reinforced and
strengthened by the testimony of the Book of Mormon, of which we
have heard at this conference. Much information was given to us in the
discourse delivered by President Ivins respecting the Book of Mormon.
-And then we have the further witness of the truth in our Book of
Doctrine and Covenants, and still again in the Pearl of Great Price.
These four records constitute the standard works of the Church.

THE BIBLE AS A WITNESS

We know very well the value of the Bible which has come down to

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us through the ages, and which is widely distributed throughout the
world today. In nearly every room of the standard hotels of the coun-
try, in the large cities, there is a Bible for the consultation and study
of the guests of the hotel. We find the Bible in the homes of hundreds
and thousands of people. ;It is a wonderful record. It is a religious
history of the people of God upon the eastern continent. It is the history
of the children of Israel, who it seems have not been held in the
highest repute by many Christian people during the last eighteen hun-
dred years ; and yet the world is indebted to the 'Jews, or the children
of Israel, for this precious record. In this record they are called the
people of God. Therein you will find an account of the holy prophets of
old, how that they spake as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost,
and made many precious predictions.

In the Bible you will also find rather a full account of the life and
works of the Savior and his Apostles, and there you read of the great
atonement that was wrought out for the children of men. We do> not
always stop to consider that the Christ came to earth through the
lineage of the children of Israel, but so it was. His Apostles were of
that lineage, and in fact we believe as Latter-day Saints that we are
of the same lineage. We realize as a Church that we are greatly in-
debted to the Jewish race for much information respecting the plan of
redemption. We ought not to forget that. It appears to me that we
should be kept in remembrance of it, and that we ought to feel an in-
terest, and probably we do, in the Jewish people, because we believe that
the time is not far distant when they will accept the Gospel, will acknowl-
edge the divine birth of the Savior, and consequently will not be looking
for another Messiah. This has been predicted by the prophets of old.

THE BOOK OF MORMON

Now, as to the Book of Mormon, the second witness mentioned.
It is a wonderful book and it has come to us in a most remarkable
way. The story reads almost like a romance and yet we know and
testify that it is absolutely true. The Book of Mormon is a history
of the ancient inhabitants of America, of whom the Lamanites, or the
American Indians, are descendants. They have dwindled in unbelief
and in many respects have become degraded. They have fallen from
the high place they once occupied in the civilization of ancient America.

The title page of the Book of Mormon gives some idea of the
character of the Book. It follows :

"The Book of Mormon, an account written by the hand of Mormon upon
Plates taken from the Plates of Nephi.

"Wherefore, it is an abridgment of the record of the people of Nephi,
and also of the Lamanites— Written to the Lamanites, who are a remnant
of the house of Israel; and also to Jew and Gentile— Written by way of com-
mandment, and also by the spirit of prophecy and of revelation— Written
and sealed up, and hid up unto the Lord, that they might not be destroyed—
r o come forth by the gift and power of God unto the interpretation thereof-
Sealed dv the hand of Moroni, and hid up unto the Lord, to come forth in due
time by way of the Gentile— The interpretation thereof by the gift of God

PRESIDENT RUDGER CLAWS ON

"An abridgment taken from the Book of Ether also, which is a record
of the people of Jared, who were scattered at the time the Lord confounded
the language of the people, when they were building a tower to get to heaven
— Which is to show unto the remnant of the House of Israel what great
things the Lord hath done for their fathers; and that they may know the
covenants of the Lord, that they are not cast off forever — And also to the
convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal
God, manifesting himself unto all nations — And now, if there are faults
they are the mistakes of men; wherefore, condemn not the things of God,
that ye. may be found spotless at the judgment-seat of Christ."

The history of the people of Nephi began about six hundred years
before Christ and ended four hundred and twenty years after Christ,
covering a period of about one thousand years. It is a remarkable
history and was hidden up by commandment of God, hidden in the
earth to come forth at a later time. It has come forth. An angel came
down from on high and appeared to a young man by the name of Joseph
Smith and delivered to him this record which was taken out of the
earth.

ANCIENT PREDICTIONS FULFILLED

The circumstance is referred to in the Bible, strange as it may seem.
The Prophet Isaiah speaks of the matter and he alludes to it in an
interesting way. If you will consult the twenty-ninth chapter of Isaiah
you will find words to this effect :

"Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt! add ye year to
year; let them kill sacrifices.

"Yet I will distress Ariel, and there shall be heaviness and sorrow: and
it shall be unto me as Ariel.

"And I will camp against thee round about, and will lay siege against
thee with a mount, and I will raise forts against thee.

"And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground,
and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be, as of one
that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper
out of the dust."

Now that is remarkable language, the speaking of something that
shall come out of the ground, a voice, a message from the dead. It fits
exactly the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, although the prophecy
was uttered centuries before the book was revealed to the world.

The Lord speaks of the condition of the world at the time the
book was destined to come forth. He says :

"Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with
their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their
fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:

"Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this
people, even a marvelous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise
men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid."

So Isaiah predicts that by reason of these whisperings that come
out of the ground, the Lord will proceed to do a marvelous work and a
wonder in that day. Well, fortunately, the Latter-day Saints by the
will of God have come into possession of this wonderful record, the

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Book of Mormon, and there is much evidence that goes with the record
to show that it is a true work of God, and was translated by his
marvelous power. There were four witnesses who saw the angel and
who handled the plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated
by divine power, and there were eight witnesses who did not see the
angel, but they did see the plates arud handled them and testified of the
matter in a most solemn way. The testimonies of the eleven witnesses
are published in the fore part of the Book.

So far as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is con-
cerned we have more real testimonies of the truth of the Book of
Mormon than we have of the Bible, yet we accept the Bible as the
word of God and we believe in it.

THE THIRD WITNESS

The third witness, which is known as the Book of Doctrine and
Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, contains
numerous revelations of God given to his people through Joseph Smith
the Prophet, for truly he was a prophet of God, and these revelations
bear the stamp of divine approval upon them. There is a spirit and a
power that go with this book that is very impressive indeed, and to many
people very convincing. It is a testimony to the world that the Latter-
day Saints do believe in the principle of revelation and that we cannot
very well see how the Church of God can be established upon the earth
and how his purposes can be accomplished unless he speaks to his
people. It is his Church. It is called by his name, called the Church of
Jesus Christ, and it would seem highly important that he being the
President of the Church should speak to his people, otherwise they
would be left without proper direction. We must look to him for
wisdom and understanding and inspiration. I testify to the world
that the Book of Doctrine and Covenants throws very much light
indeed upon the plan of salvation.

THE PEAR]. OF GREAT PRICE

The Pearl of Great Price, the fourth witness, like the other three
sacred witnesses corresponds with them exactly in its teachings of the
Gospel of Jesus Christ.

There is no variation except that it gives one a little fuller and
clearer understanding of those teachings. The title page and con-
tents read as follows: "The Pearl of Great Price, A Selection From
the Revelations, Translations, and Narrations of Joseph Smith, First
Prophet, Seer and Revelator to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
Day Saints."

Contents : The Book of Moses— 8 chapters. The Bock of Abraham
—5 chapters. Writings of Joseph Smith. The Articles of Faith.,

WITNESSES WHOSE TESTIMONIES AGREE

M state without hesitation that these four testimonies agree perfectly
in respect to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the plan of redemption

PRESIDENT RUDGER CLAW SON

which he instituted for the salvation of men. There is a dif-
ference of course in the history of the people who were responsible
for these wonderful records, but no difference whatever in the plan
of salvation therein set forth. For instance, the Holy Bible teaches
with clearness, we think, that the first principles of the Gospel are faith,
repentance, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, and the
laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost. These con-
stitute the fundamental principles of the Gospel.

The Book of Mormon certifies to the fact and agrees perfectly with
the Bible in this matter, as do the Book of Doctrine and Covenants and
the Pearl of Great Price. The organization of the Church as in-
stituted by the Savior himself and which was composed in the main of
apostles, prophets, evangelists, high priests, seventies, elders, bishops,
priests, teachers and deacons, which constituted the Melchizedek priest-
hood and the Aaronic priesthood, is emphasized. This organization is
strongly emphasized in the Bible as it is in the Book of Mormon, and
as it is set forth also in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants and the
Pearl of Great Price.

So we have these four witnesses that agree perfectly in respect
to this matter, and, so far as we know, and so far as our history has
gone and our experience, the testimony of the Three Witnesses as well
as that of the Eight Witnesses has not been overthrown. The world
will be judged by the evidence set forth in these precious records.

INDIVIDUAL TESTIMONY

I testify to you, my brethren and sisters, and rejoice in the knowl-
edge, that I do know that this is the Church of 'Jesus Christ of Latter-
day Saints, that Christ was the Savior of the world, that he suffered
by atonement for the sins of the world, and that we must look to him,
and as Latter-day Saints we do look to him, for salvation through our
good works and by our faith.

I testify to you that I do know, as I know that I am standing here
and speaking, that Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God, that he
accomplished a mighty work, that he is better known and better under-
stood by his people today than he was in the days when he lived upon
the earth. I think we know him better than most anyone else, and we
are just as close to him as any people ever were when he lived upon the
earth. This is the Church and Kingdom of God seen by Daniel of old
that was to be set up and should never be thrown down or given to other
people, but must go on until the will of the Lord is accomplished and
the world is saved by repentance and by faith. This is my testimony
and I humbly bear it in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH

I am very grateful to our Heavenly Father for membership in
his Church. I am thankful for the privilege !I have had of attending

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the sessions of this conference thus far, and for the inspiration that
has been felt as a result of the instruction we have received.

I fully sense the responsibility that attaches to one who occupies this
position, and desire that the Lord will bless me, that I may be directed
to say such things as will be profitable to us here upon this occasion.

PERILOUS TIMES

We are living in perilous times. The scriptures are being fulfilled,
and as it appears to me this is the particular time when, if it were
possible, the very elect would be deceived. It is remarkable how easy
it is for those who desire to advance their financial interests in the world
to find a reason for setting aside the plain teachings of the Lord with
reference to our lives. And it is strange to me how many people fall
into the habit of listening to those who say things that are contrary to
the revealed will of our Heavenly Father.

This is a great institution with many organizations that are cal-
culated to bless and benefit mankind. I fear that as members of the
Church we depend too much upon the auxiliary organizations, and
upon the advice and counsel of those outside our own households. We
have already heard of many of the blessings that the Lord has given to
us in the sacred records that have been kept until our day, and that
contain the advice and counsel of an all-wise Father. It seems strange
that so many of our people, with the opportunities offered, lack familiar-
ity with the contents of these sacred records.

CONSERVATION ADVISED

We live in a rapid age ; there is new development constantly.
The Lord has warned us that there are certain requirements that
are made of us, and that if we fail to take advantage of his advice and
counsel, these other things that seem so important will be but a source
of sorrow and regret to us. This people have been advised to conserve
their energies and their means. We have been taught by those whom
the Lord has raised up to instruct us that we should live within our
income, that we should not follow the fashions of the world and expend
as rapidly and even more rapidly than we can earn the money that
comes into our hands, to take care of ourselves and our families.

_ I fear that the Latter-day Saints, in many cases, are blinded by
their own vanity, by their desire to be what the world is ; and we have
been told in such plain language by our Fleavenly Father that we
cannot live as the world lives and enjoy his Spirit.

CONSISTENCY IN OUR LIVES

We read in the Old Testament scripture and in the New Testament,
we read in the Book of Mormon and in the Doctrine and Covenants, the
advice and counsel of our Heavenly Father through his servants 'that
direct us to be consistent in our lives, not to be selfish, not to desire
those things that belong to somebody else, to take care of our bodies,
to have our houses in order, to exemplify in our lives those virtues that

ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH

will enrich us here and prepare us for eternal life in the Celestial king-
dom. And if any of us fail it will not be because we have not been
well taught.

THE THINGS OF THE WORLD

As I go out through the country and see the improvements that are
made, as I look at the fine conveyances that our people are using, I
observe the tendency to follow after the world in so many ways. I fear
that if we are not careful we will be tempted beyond our power to resist
and we will lose the gifts the Lord desires to bestow upon us. In his
wisdom he has warned us that some things commonly used by the
world are not good for us.

EVILS THAT AFFLICT MANKIND

For instance, we read in Section eighty-nine of the Doctrine and
Covenants that in our day certain evils and designs would exist in the
hearts of conspiring men ; and as I see the increase in the use of to-
bacco among the people of the world, and realize its baneful effects
upon the human family, I am concerned for our youth. If as members
of the Church we fail to listen to the advice and counsel of our Heavenly
Father we will not gain but we will lose our blessings. If as the head
of a household I fail to influence the lives of my family to avoid the
evils that afflict mankind ; if by reason of my own carelessness or my
indifference I fail to inspire in my children faith in God, surely I must
know that sooner or later I may repent in sorrow.

The harmful use of stimulants and narcotics among the Latter-day
Saints ought not to prevail. These habits should not be customary with
us as they are in the world, for we have been better taught.

We ought not to be among those who violate the Sabbath day,
because the Lord has told us plainly what we should do in order to
properly honor his holy day.

We ought not to be among those who neglect their prayers and fail
to seek the Lord for his advice and counsel, for he has told us that
if wej will come to him he will hear us and bless us; and if we in our
families neglect our prayers the loss will be ours.

DIVINE INSTRUCTION

I do not feel like criticising people in the world, because of conduct
that is prejudicial to good health and good morals, as much as I feel
like criticising the members of this Church when we fail. We have
been divinely instructed. Not only do we have the advice that has
been given to the world through the Old and New Testament, but that
has been supplemented in our day by teachings contained in other sacred
records and by the inspired counsels of men that we have sustained as
prophets, seers and revelators. With these things confronting us
surely the members of this Church should ever be on the alert, we

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should think seriously of our privileges and our opportunities, and we
should not be willing to do what others do because it is popular.

DUTIES OF PARENTS

It is the duty of fathers and mothers to call their families together
and instruct them. It is our duty to bow before the Lord in prayer in
our homes. It is our duty to ask the blessing upon the food that we
partake of and to thank Him who gives us all these things. It is our
duty to be honest with our neighbor, not incur obligations thoughtlessly
that we may not be able to meet. We should teach our children that
honesty even in minor things is important if they are to obtain a
place in the Celestial kingdom.

We should stress the necessity of morality among the rising gen-
eration. It is not safe for us to leave to our public schools and to other
institutions outside of our homes the training of our boys and girls
with reference to a proper conduct in life. If we do not teach them the
sacredness of these bodies of ours, if we do not inspire in them a desire
to build character that' is beyond reproach, if we fail to impress upon
them the danger that confronts them in their contact with the evils that
afflict mankind, we will not be justified by saying that we did not
realize how serious it was. God has warned us that we should teach our
children to pray and to walk uprightly before him. He has given us
schoolmasters after his own heart who have been instructing us from
year to year in the things that we should do. If. our children grow up
in idleness we know that that is displeasing to the Lord. If those of
our households neglect to hold in reverence the things of God, we
must know that sooner or later sorrow will come into their lives; and
if it comes into the lives of our children then we, too, must join them
in sorrow and remorse.

INTEGRITY AND INDUSTRY IMPORTANT

I feel very much concerned, when I think of the temptations that
are everywhere present. The very fact that so much wealth has been
made available to many people gives the youth in some instances the
feeling that because their parents are well-to-do, honest toil is not neces-
sary or desirable ; and yet I am satisfied that no people have ever lived
upon the earth who have failed to earn their livelihood by integrity
and industry, but have gone to decay.

I wish there were some way of inculcating into the minds of our
boys and girls a greater feeling of appreciation for the advice and
counsel of our Heavenly Father, and a desire to benefit by it.

HARMFUL LITERATURE

When we think of the large amount of information that is dis-
seminated in our magazines and books, easilv accessible to our boys
and girls, much of which is harmful to those who read it, how important
it is for us who have had years of experience to safeguard and direct

ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH

them by pointing out the dangers that confront them if they accept as
desirable the vagaries and philosophies of men and women who do
not believe in God.

THE SAFE COURSE

I am thinking of the time when ancient Israel went astray. They
worshiped false gods They listened to that which was popular, but
false, and then destruction overtook them. We are in just as much
danger, my brethren and sisters, as any people who have ever lived
upon the earth, unless we listen to our Heavenly Father. His is the
only voice, and the teachings of those whom he directs are the only
teachings that we are safe in following. We know that the adversary
is alert. If he can, betray the rising generation, if he can lay pitfalls
for their feet and ensnare them in evil his desire has been realized and
their downfall is accomplished.

TEACHING IN THE HOME

It is important that in our home and by our own firesides we take
more pains to teach our sons and our daughters those truths which the
Lord has made plain to us are necessary for eternal salvation. What
a wonderful privilege it Is to live in an age such as this! No such
opportunities were ever afforded the human family before. But with
these opportunities and blessings there also comes temptation. It is
everywhere present. We must not take too much for granted, but be
alert. We must feel the importance of our duty as fathers and mothers
and safeguard the future happiness of our youth.

I am grateful for the great Primary organization in this Church,
for the Sabbath Schools, and the Mutual Improvement Associations.
I am grateful for the Relief Society, and for our great Church school
system. All of these things are making a contribution for the salvation
of mankind. I am mindful of the advantage of missionary experiences
that come to so many of our young men and women. All these things
are calculated to draw us nearer to our Heavenly Father. But I feel
like calling to the attention of the fathers and mothers of Israel today
the fact that all these splendid helps are not sufficient. It is your duty
and mine to see to it that in our own homes and at our own firesides the
important lessons of life are taught to these children, not leaving them
to the kindness of our brethren and sisters — and there is great kindness
manifested by them. We must not depend upon them entirely. It is
our duty — I should say it is out privilege as well as our duty to take
sufficient time to surround our children with safeguards and to so
love them and earn their love that they will be glad to listen to our
advice and counsel. But if as a man holding the priesthood of the
living God I so far forget myself as to violate the Sabbath day, can I say
to my son that he shall not do that ? If I violate the Word of Wisdom
by using tea and coffee in my home, what influence have I with my boy
or my girl when I say to them, you shall not use tobacco? These

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difficulties that afflict us do not) come all at once. They are insidious
and they creep into our midst a little at a time, until after a while they
become dominant in our thinking.

EVILS AND DESIGNS IN HEARTS OF CONSPIRING MEN

When I realize the harmfulness of the cigarette, and how great
the effort that is being made to make its use universal by every means
of advertising, I realize what our Father meant when he warned us to
be on our guard.

Permit me to read what the Lord has said with reference to this
matter. This revelation was given February 27th, 1833 :

"Behold, verily, thus saith the Lord unto you: In consequence of evils
and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the
last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this
word of wisdom by revelation. — "

In that very chapter the Lord mentions the use of strong
drinks. He tells us of the baneful influence of tobacco. He
warns us against the very things that today are being championed by
men who stand in high places, as being desirable to the children of men.
Are we as a people to listen to these men who are misled by the ad-
versary? Or shall we take for granted that what they say is true,
when in the face of it, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, he who
loves us and desires our salvation, has plainly told us that these things
are not good for us ?

JOY AND BLESSINGS THROUGH RIGHTEOUS LIVES

I hope and pray that as members of the Church Ave will be more
diligent in the future than we have been in the past ; that we will be
more earnest than we have ever been in safe-guarding the youth
against all manner of evil. If any of us in the past have ignored the
kind and loving advice of our Heavenly Father with reference to these
things that so many think are not important, let us repent of our sins,
and ask forgiveness for our weakness. Then let us turn to him and
obey his wise counsels ; thereby enriching our lives and earning the
right to the companionship of his Holy Spirit. We will then radiate
an influence in the world for the blessing of all those with whom we
come in contact.

I pray that the Lord will bless you good men and women who
preside in the; various departments of this great Church, you who give
so much of your time for the blessing of mankind, that your physical
and spiritual strength may be renewed unto you; that the joy that
was expressed by one of our faithful brethren this morning when he
referred to his mission experience, may fill your souls ; and that we
may all feel the sacred nearness of our Heavenly Father by reason of
our righteous lives.

our father's work
This is our Father's work. He gave it to the world for the salva-

ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH

tion of the human family. He has counseled and advised us in loving
tenderness, and now let us be wise, let us be consistent. Let us put
our own houses in order; and then by the power that will come to us
as a result of our faithfulness and devotion, let us carry the message of
life and salvation unto the children of men with greater power, with
greater strength, with greater determination than we have ever done
before, to the honor and glory of God and the blessing of his children,
to our own salvation and the salvation of those we love, 1 pray in the
name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

A sacred solo, "Nature's Adoration," was sung by Charles O.
Peterson.

ELDER NOAH S. POND

President of the Northern States Mission

My brethren and sisters, this is a blessed privilege and I am very
happy to have this opportunity of briefly reporting the Northern States
mission of the Church.

It is a pleasure indeed to advise you that there is not a single case
of sickness or illness among the brethren and sisters laboring in that
mission. During the past six months the flu and kindred diseases and
complications have raged almost rampant. These diseases have claimed
their victims by the hundreds, and deaths have ensued in many cases.
Our missionaries have not wholly escaped these illnesses, but through
the providences of our kind Heavenly Father, through administration
and faith, we have had no serious results ; and each one, so far as I am
advised, is in the enjoyment of full and perfect health and strength.

We have had some wonderful manifestations of the power of God's
priesthood. One of cur aged brethren, a short-term missionary, who
was not able to endure the rigors of the hard winter, was attacked
by flu and double pneumonia. We got him placed comfortably in a
hospital under good doctor's and nurses' care in the city of Milwaukee.
The first and second days his condition was reported very favorable.
On a Wednesday noon the mission office received a telephone message
from the doctor in! charge, advising me to come to Milwaukee at once,
that this brother could not live the day out ; and he advised mej to com-
municate with his family and let them know how serious his condition
was, or they would receive the word of his death before they knew
of his illness. A son of this good brother was also a short-term mis-
sionary in one of our other states, and I communicated immediately
with him, asking that he advise his folks at home in jldaho, and then
hasten himself to his father's bedside, to which place I also would speed.

When we came there in the afternoon the old gentleman could
scarcely breathe, but his unbounded faith, united with the faith of his
associates, prevailed. He was administered to two or three times in the
afternoon and evening. We stayed with him until a late hour at night,

GENERAL CONFERENCE

and at midnight his son arrived. When the doctor came in the morning
he could scarcely credit the improvement in the old gentleman's con-
dition ; and after he had given a thorough diagnosis of the case, ex-
amined him thoroughly and prescribed what he thought was necessary
to be dona and was ready to go, I told the doctor I would like to talk
with him.

We went out into another room and in a fifteen or twenty minute in-
terview I told him who we were, why we were, and our purposes as
missionaries in the nations of the earth. J told him how our elders and
our sisters traveled among the nations of the earth preaching the Gospel,
and I asked him if we could depend upon him giving our brother his
best services. He was very much impressed, and he assured me that
he would not only give the best possible attention, but that he would
be considerate in presenting the bill for his services, and that in the
future whenever we had occasion to trust to his care any of our elders
or missionaries that we might be certain they would be given the best
of service.

It was a pleasure to deliver this kind of message to Dr. Gambling,
one of the leading physicians and practitioners in the city of Milwaukee
and in one of its fine hospitals. I also had; the opportunity of delivering
the same message to the superintendent of the hospital.

This brother who the doctor said; could not live the day out con-
tinued to regain his strength until a period of two weeks time had
elapsed, when we met him as he was transferring from one train to
another in the city of Chicago, homeward bound. Through the grace
and providence of our Heavenly Father his life was spared.

A very fine Latter-day Saint doctor, a former missionary in the
Northern States, later a student and graduate, and now a practitioner
of medicine and surgery in one of our great cities, recently married.
He came to our office one afternoon and asked me if we would give
his wife a mother's blessing preceding her confinement, and we were
very pleased to assure him that we would do that. A few days after-
wards he called me, very much alarmed and concerned, and said that

very untoward evidences were manifest in the condition of his wife

high blood pressure, temperature, body filling with dropsy and a num-
ber of things that presaged a terrible condition. He asked if we
could give his wife that mother's blessing that day. In the evening
Sister Pond accompanied me to his home, which was five or six miles
distant from the office. He told us of the terrible condition his wife
was in. He had had experience, and he said he had seen a number
of his own household die under confinement cases such as was imminent
with his wife, and that he and another very eminent doctor did not
propose to take any chances with regard to the life of his wife, that
that night they were going to perform a Caesarian operation and take
the baby dead or alive, but save the life of his wife. When we gave
her a blessing we promised her that her delivery should be natural and
normal and that she would have the blessing and privilege of nursing
her baby. He drove us to our home, and when he returned matters

ELDER NOAH S. POND

were moving rapidly. Labor had set in and he hurriedly secured the
ambulance and took his wife to the hospital. Arriving there he was
very much perturbed about not locating the other doctor. He could
not get him on the telephone; so he took his car and rushed to his
home and office in an endeavor to secure him. An hour and a half
or two hours intervened, and when he came back after a futile search
for the other doctor, his wife had been delivered of a beautiful bahy
and everything was natural and normal. The dropsy, the high blood
pressure, and the other untoward evidences had disappeared. The baby
was premature and was placed in an incubator. It is thriving beautifully.

This is a typical case. Our missionaries have had wonderful ex-
periences. One of our short-term brethren visited and was kindly
received by the governor of one of our great States, who invited him to
come to the Capitol and later to visit his home. A few weeks ago one
of our sister missionaries was kindly received and invited into a home,
and when she was properly seated the lady of the home said :

"My husband is a grandson of Colonel Geddes, who as a member
of the State militia drove the Mormon people out of Illinois. We have
heard all about the anti-Mormon side of this history. I am so happy to
meet you this afternoon. I want you to take off your things, sit down
in my house, and tell me the truth from the Mormon standpoint."

This sister later had the opportunity of meeting this woman's
husband, and they are now interested prospective investigators of the
truth of the restored Gospel, and this divine Church.

I am pleased, my brethren and sisters, to know that our kind
Heavenly Father never drew a geographical line of distinction with
reference to his children. On the contrary, the scripture and the Gospel
teach us that

"God hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all
the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and
the bounds of their habitation."

Paul taught the Athenians and the Romans that there was no dif-
ference between the Jew and the Greek, for the same God was Father
over all, and would give his blessings to all those who would obey him
and seek him. Paul continued by saying:

"How then shail they call on him in whom they have not believed? and
how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall
they hear without a preacher?

"And how shall they preach except they be sent? as it is written,
How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and
bring glad tidings of good things!"

Paul further declared, as did also Isaiah, that not all the world
would receive the Gospel, but that it should be preached to them and
they should have an opportunity of hearing it. As I observed, I am
happy to know that our Father never drew a geographic line; he has
never expressed love for one of his children simply because he was
born in Great Britain, and hated one because he was born in Germany ;

GENERAL CONFERENCE

or loved one because he was born in the United States, and disliked
one because he was born in Australia. But wherever our Father's chil-
dren have obeyed him and sought him he has recognized them and given
them the blessings of the Gospel.

I can testify to you that this Gospel is being preached to the na-
tions of the earth in advance of the coming of our Lord and Savior.
I have seen the fulfilment of that passage of scripture which says that he
would take them one of a city and two of a family, and give them
pastors after his own mind. In my youth I used to think that was
wrong, or a misinterpretation of the scriptures, but I have seen it
manifest where one single individual in a city or town or hamlet, and
where two of a family, have accepted the Gospel. We glide from one
State into another, as from Utah to Idaho, from Iowa to Illinois, from
Illinois to Indiana, from Michigan and Wisconsin in the United States
into Canada. Men and nations make the geographic line of distinction by
an ocean, a sea, a river, a lake, a mountain range. But our Father
draws no line of geography in the salvation of his children.

I am happy to report the excellent work of your sons and daughters,
your brothers and sisters, elders and lady missionaries of the Northern
States. I humbly pray for our Father's choicest blessings upon his
.servants, the First Presidency, the Council of the Twelve, and all the
presiding quorums of the priesthood, you my brethren and sisters in
the wards and stakes of Zion. You fathers and mothers, we are
solicitous of co-operation with you in the fine working operations of
your sons and daughters as missionaries.

I pray for our Father's blessings upon all his children in the
name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

ELDER MILES L. JONES

President of the East Central States Mission

My dear brethren and sisters, I certainly feel my weakness in stand-
ing before you this afternoon.

It has been only about two and one-half months since the East
Central States mission was organized, and it has meant a great deal
of hard Work to get the organization completed and to get things in
running order. But I am very pleased to state that with the wonderful
help we have received from Elder Stephen L. Richards, President
Charles A. Callis, President Henry H. Rolapp, and others, we have been
able to gather the necessary information from time to time, so that we
have been able to organize the mission so that it is now in a very good
condition.

jit took considerable time to decide just where to locate, and then
to obtain headquarters. The East Central States mission comprises the
following states which were taken from the Southern States mission :
Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and North Carolina. It also includes
the state of West Virginia, which formerly belonged to the Eastern

ELDER MILES L. JONES

States mission. Our headquarters are located in Louisville, Kentucky.

Your sons and your daughters who are laboring in that mission
are all interested in their work. They are united and working together
for the advancement of the cause in all parts of the mission, jl am
very pleased to report that at the present time we haven't an elder or
lady missionary that is sick or afflicted in any way ; they are all able
to take care of their work and go about their duties, for which we are
very thankful. During the past winter there have been many cases of
influenza among our lahoring force, as well as among the Saints;
there has also been an epidemic of small-pox and one of diphtheria
in that part of the world. But we have had very few fatalities among
our people, for which we are very thankful. Today they are prac-
tically all enjoying health and strength and are enjoying their labors.

We have been blessed with a number of short-term missionaries —
men of mature years, those who have had experience in the bishopric, in
the stake presidency, as high councilors, and in other capacities—
who have come into our midst; and they have been able to help the
younger elders and lady missionaries. They have been able to lead into the
waters of baptism people whom the younger missionaries have not been
able to persuade to go that far.

Two weeks ago last Sunday we held a conference at New Martins-
ville, West Virginia. We had three very good meetings, well at-
tended. A few days following that conference eleven honest souls en-
tered the waters of baptism.

A week ago last Sunday we held a conference at Madisonville,
Kentucky, in a part of the country that heretofore has been somewhat
hostile, so to speak, to our people. The authorities of that city gave us
the use of the court house, free of charge, and we had an attendance
of 148 at the afternoon session, without counting the children. Of that
number I should say that about one-third were representative citizens
of that community who did not belong to the Church ; and with but
one exception they seemed to be well satisfied with that which they heard.
During the course of my remarks that afternoon I referred to the
love that the Lord has for his children, that instead of there being
just a single dividing line so that certain ones would go either to eternal
damnation and others to eternal exaltation and glory, every man, woman,
and child would be judged according to his works here upon the earth,
and would receive a reward such as they might merit. One gentleman
took exception to that remark. He said, "According to your version no
one goes to hell, or there fs no hell.'' I told him that we were not
preaching hell-fire and damnation, but that we were preaching salvation
for the human family. After talking a few minutes I think I fairly
well satisfied the gentleman that the views which the Latter-day Saints
give to the world are logical and in accordance with the doctrines which
the Lord has set forth here upon the earth.

Not long ago a professor in one of the schools in one of the states
of our mission brought up the question as to the belief of the Mormon
people. At the close of his remarks a little girl in the class, who, by the

GENERAL CONFERENCE

way, is a member of the Church, raised her hand and wanted to correct
him as to a certain statement that he had made ; and she did correct
his statement. He turned to her and said, "I would like to see you a
few minutes after the close of the school." The young lady remained
after school, and they conversed for some time in regard to Mormon
teachings. Finally he said, "I have come to the conclusion that if I am
going to learn anything about the Mormons I must go. to a Mormon."
He wanted some literature, and literature pertaining to the Gospel has
been furnished him from time to time. Since my coming here, just
a day or two ago, I received a letter from this gentleman in which he
asked that some one be sent to his school to attend certain exercises
that are to be held within the next week or ten days, and there present
the views and teachings of our people to his class and also to another
class or two that want to unite with his. I lost no time in answering
that letter and directing the president of the district in which that school
is located to go personally or to see that some elder is sent there to
fill that appointment, and set forth to those students the things that the
Latter-day Saints believe and teach.

'I find that in our meetings in various places many people will talk
with us and listen to that which we have to say. While it is a time
when there is a great deal of indifference in the world, yet the seed is
being planted from time to time, and some day it will spring forth
and bear fruit. As was said by Paul, "God giveth the increase." So it
is in the world today. I find in my conversations with people that
when I ask them if they are satisfied within themselves with that which
they have, almost without exception they say that they are not, that
there is something lacking. They have the desire to worship God in
some way, or in some form, but there is something lacking within their
souls, and that is the message that we have for them.

Some of you who are corresponding with your sons and daughters
from time to time, can, in your letters, to them, give them a word or
two that will mean a great deal to them. I recall now a letter that was
shown to me by one of the young ladies just before Christmas time, that
she received from her mother in Downey, Idaho. II hope that mother
is in the congregation today. In the letter she said, calling her daughter
by name, "We would be glad if you could be with us during the Christ-
mas festivities, but we would rather that you be where you are," ex-
pressing just what the mother felt. While she would have liked to have
her daughter with her, yet she would rather that she be in the nations
of the earth performing the work she was called to do, and carrying the
message of salvation to those who sit in darkness.

I rejoice in the knowledge that I have of this work. I know as
I know that I live that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, the Redeemer
of the world, and that Joseph Smith was the humble instrument in the
hands of the Almighty of again establishing his work here upon the
earth ; and that work will go forth until eventually it covers the entire
earth.

'I pray that God will bless us all, that we may have the spirit of

ELDER MJLES L. JONES

our work from time to time, and be able to magnify our callings in a
way that will be pleasing in his sight, so that when we come to the end
of mortal life we may receive the plaudit, "Well done, thou good and
faithful servant : thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make
thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord."
May this be our happy lot, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

ELDER JOHN G. ALLRED

President of the North Central States Mission

The missionaries of the Church are perhaps putting forth more
effort today than ever before in our history in the distribution of the
Book of Mormon, about which so much has been said during this
conference. Not long ago we received through the mail a little booklet
written by a reverend gentleman who had acted as a missionary in this
state. He said that on every page of the Book of Mormon was written
"Fraud, Fraud, Fraud." He said Joseph Smith was so unlearned and
ignorant that he misspelled the same word three times on one page. I
thought as I read that tract : You should not only put Fraud upon every
page of the Book of Mormon, but you should turn back into the Old
Testament itself and write Fraud upon its pages ; for Isaiah, as has been
quoted here today, in declaring prophetically, six hundred years before
Christ, the person who was to produce this book, said that that person
would say he could not translate it because he was not learned. Our
friend would have the Prophet Joseph Smith deny that prophetic state-
ment which was uttered concerning him hundreds of years before his
birth.

He said, "No matter how the Mormons dress this work up, you
can always see the cloven foot sticking out." I thought : I wish I could
talk with that man a little while and open the pages of this book, and
read some things to him. And these words came to my mind : There
is a passage in this book that says, speaking of the American continent,
that it is a choice land, choice above all other lands. Whether that
statement was made by that young Nephite prophet before he had ever
seen this continent, while en route from the old world, or whether
it was made by Joseph Smith when he published this book in 1830,
it has been fulfilled. It has a prophetic fulfilment even in our day,
for this nation of ours has really come to be a great nation; it is today
a land choice above all other lands. When this book was published
to the world in 1830, there were a few scant miles of railroad on the
American continent. Today, after an hundred years, what do we find?
Fifty per cent of the mileage of railroads of the world is in the United
States. Seventy-five per cent of the telephone and telegraph lines of
the world are in the United States. Ninety per cent of the automobiles
of the world are in the United States. Would Joseph Smith have dared
to say in 1830, when he published this record, that these conditions

GENERAL CONFERENCE

would prevail, when so much depended upon their fulfilment so far as
his future was concerned?

Again, twenty-nine years after this book was published the first oil
well in the United States was driven in Pennsylvania. Today we have
over three hundred thousand oil prodtfcing wells in the United States.
During the year 1927 we produced 109,000,000 barrels of oil — sixty-six
per cent of all the oil of the world. Did Joseph Smith know in 1830
that we would be producing sixty-six per cent of the oil of the world?
Or did Nephi know it when ha said, away back before he landed here,
that this would be the condition? Surely this is a great and mighty
nation.

This book further says :

"And I will fortify this land against all other nations.

"And he that fighteth against Zion shall perish, saith God."

Let the nations of the world beware, for that nation that fights
against Zion shall perish.

We are a great nation in many ways. Politically we are a great
nation. President Hoover, in his speech in New Jersey last September,
said : "The great American ideal is the equal opportunity of its citizens."
Nowhere else under the shining sun today is there opportunity equal to
that which has been guaranteed and worked out for this nation. We
recently voted for two men for the highest honor within the gift of
the American people — one of them an orphaned newsboy, the other one
an orphaned blacksmith's son — and one of them is today seated in the
United States presidential chair. He said in his inaugural speech : "If I
am to succeed as the President of the United States, I must do it under
the authority and power of God."

"There shall be no kings upon this, land," says this book. Who
would have dared to say that in 1830, when the Book of Mormon was
published? Who knew that the nations of the old world would not
overrun this nation and set up a kingdom? People may say that "we
can dress up that book but the cloven foot sticks out," but I am prepared
to say, from the depth of my soul that you may picture all the cloven
feet you want to but the points of eternal truth will stick out ; and
the youth of this people will discover, with their brethren and sisters
who have gone forth and preached the Gospel, that this work is the
work of God.

I bear witness today that the Lord knew what he was speaking
about when he said that the words of this book should be carried to
the learned, and they would say : I cannot translate it for it is sealed ;
and it would be carried back to the unlearned who would say : I cannot,
for I am not learned. And then God would say : "Forasmuch as this
people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor
me, but have removed their heart far from me. * * * Therefore,
behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people,
even a marvelous work and a wonder : for the wisdom of their wise
men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall
be hid."

ELDER JOHN G. ALLRED

I leave my witness with you, and wish that I could leave it with
the world, that God our Father has restored to the earth the fulness of
the Gospel of Jesus, in this sacred record ; for it says on the fly-leaf that
it has been brought forth for the convincing of the Jew and the Gentile
that Jesus is the Christ. I testify to you today that the Book of Mor-
mon is bearing witness in the hearts of the children of men as faithfully
today as the record of the Jews has done in the past, that Jesus is the
Christ ; and I leave this witness with you in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The congregation sang "Now let us Rejoice in the day of Salva-
tion," and after the closing prayer by President James R. Ware of the
South Sevier Stake, the Conference adjourned until 10 o'clock a. m.,
Saturday, April 6th.

SECOND DAY

MORNING MEETING

President Heber J. Grant presided at the third session of the
conference, which began at 10 o'clock a. m., Saturday, April 6, 1929.

The congregation sang the hymn, "How Firm a Foundation."

The invocation was offered by President T. Clark Callister of the
Millard Stake.

The congregation sang "Redeemer of Israel/'

ELDER JAMES E. TALMAGE

Speaking of the Book of Mormon, concerning which we heard
very valuable instructions yesterday, I venture to emphasize the thought
that we apply very diligently in our lives the principles and precepts set
forth in that volume of scripture. The Book of Mormon is\ more than
a book in the ordinary sense. It is the best of all the literature written
in this Church for missionary work. For many years I have urged, as
have my brethren likewise, that our missionaries strive to get the Book
of Mormon into the hands of the people, both members and non-
members of the Church. I am happy in the realization that while a
few years ago we sold copies of the Book of Mormon in lots of tens
and scores, sending them out to the missions, we now send them by
thousands. The statistics regarding the sale and distribution of that
work, particularly as reported by the mission presidents, furnish a
testimony beyond all question of the pouring out of the Spirit of the
Lord upon the people of the world.

AS TO BOOK OF MORMON LANDS

I sometimes think we pay a little undue attention to technicalities,
and to questions that cannot be fully answered with respect to the
Book of Mormon. It matters not to me just where this city or that
camp was located. I have met a few of our Book of Mormon students
who claim to be able to put a ringer upon the map and indicate every
land and city mentioned in the Book of Mormon. The fact is, the
Book of Mormon does not give us precise and definite information
whereby we can locate those places with certainty. I encourage and
recommend all possible investigation, comparison and research in this
matter. The more thinkers, investigators, workers we have in the
field the better ; but our brethren who devote themselves to that kind of
research should remember that they must speak with caution and not
declare as demonstrated truths points that are not really proved. There
is enough Jruth in the Book of Mormon to occupy you and me for the
rest of our lives, without our giving too much time and attention to
these debatable matters.

ELDER JAMES E. TALMAGE

HOW TO KNOW FOR ONE'S SELF

I speak specifically of the testimony that has come to the Latter-
day Saints, and that will come to any members of the Church or other
earnest investigator who will read the book rightly — as to its genuine-
ness. The divinely-inspired promise written by Moroni has found literal
fulfilment in scores of thousands of cases. I refer to his last word
respecting the record which he was about to hide up unto the Lord. It
is recorded in the tenth chapter of Moroni : "And when ye shall receive
these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal
Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye
shall ask with a sincere heart, with intent, having faith in Christ, he
will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost."
Then he very pertinently adds: "And by. the power of the Holy Ghost
ye may know the truth of all things."

Many of us have received that testimony; but of those who have
so received there are some who, do not stand by it as they should. I
think it well that we speak plainly to one another at times. There are
those who forget what the Lord has said through the Book of Mormon,
and who are led away into the jungle of error, much of which belongs
to the marshy and uncertain ground preempted in the name of higher
criticism. Permit me to give you an example ; one may suffice.

THE BOOK OF ISAIAH AND THE BOOK OF MORMON

It has been declared and proclaimed by a certain school of Bible
students, commentators and scholars, that the Book of Isaiah was
written not entirely by Isaiah the Prophet, the son of Amoz — in many
respects the greatest of the prophets of that age — but that the book is
the work of at least two men, and perhaps of many, part of it written
by Isaiah himself, and the other part by another man, without local
habitation or name, who lived somewhere, near the end of the period
of the Babylonian captivity or exile, fully a century after the death of
Isaiah the Prophet. That idea concerning the duality of the Book of
Isaiah has been exploited, and there are learned readers of the Bible,
who, with superior air, point out certain chapters of the Book of Isaiah
which they say were not written by Isaiah the Prophet, but by this
"deutero" or second Isaiah. So he is called in view of even the
scholars' ignorance as to his true name or place of abode. The claim
is made that the chapters of Isaiah from the second to the thirty-ninth
inclusive, were really written by Isaiah, and that thence on to the end
of the sixty-sixth chapter, the last in the book, the subject-matter is
not the writing of Isaiah at all, but that of another man, who falsely
ascribed the authorship to the Prophet.

Such is the speculation concerning the duality of authorship in that
book ; but, once started, these learned investigators have undertaken
to dissect Isaiah and to spread before the gaze of the people both his
gross and minute anatomy, to the extent of denying his authorship
of other parts of chapters, and of certain verses, singling them out

GENERAL CONFERENCE

■ from the rest, and they have left to the credit of the Prophet Isaiah only
twenty-four and a half chapters of his book.

BOOK OF ISAIAH COMPLETE BEFORE 600 B. C.

I well remember when the positive and emphatic denial of the unity
of the Book of Isaiah was put forth by the German school of
theologians. So too I remember the many questions that arose among
our people regarding it, not a few of such questions coming to me
personally. To some of the inquirers I said : "Why trouble yourselves
about the matter? I know that the claim is false." "Well, have you
looked into it?" I was asked. "Sufficiently so," I replied, "for I have
received the testimony promised by the Lord through the Prophet
Moroni concerning the integrity and genuineness of the Book of
Mormon."

In the Second Book of Nephi, I find transcriptions of several
chapters of Isaiah, that is to say, chapters as the material is now
divided and designated in our Bible — twelve chapters at least, taken
from the brass plates of Laban, which plates were brought from Jeru-
salem to Lehi in the wilderness, as you know, 600 years before the birth
of Christ. Laban was a rich man. He could afford to have books
made of metal sheets, while others perhaps were content with poorer
and less enduring material — just as some people can now afford to have
de luxe editions and others are willing to accept poorer paper and bind-
ings. But on those plates of brass, brought from 'Jerusalem in the
year 600 B. C, you will find the writings of Isaiah, not only the early
chapters allowed to Isaiah by modern scholars, but the later chapters
as well, which are ascribed by the critics to the second or false Isaiah.
Let us remember that we have in the Book of Mormon transcriptions
from the brass plates of Laban, comprising the record of Isaiah, oft-
times word for word the same as the translation appearing in the Bible,
chapter after chapter. The entire Book of Isaiah must have been in
existence at that time.

Abinadi, a Book of Mormon prophet, quoted from what is now
called the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah to the priests of Noah ; and the
fifty-third chapter comes in that portion which is ascribed to the false
Isaiah ; but the Nephites had it, Lehi had it, Laban had it six hundred
years before Christ; and my testimony as to the genuineness of the
Book of Mormon is sufficient to set at rights with me any question as
to the authorship of the Book of Isaiah.

INTEGRITY1- OF ISAIAH AFFIRMED BY THE RESURRECTED LORD

Would you have higher authority than that of mortal prophets of
Book of Mormon record? Then take the words of the Lord Jesus Christ
himself when he appeared a resurrected being amongst the Nephites.
In preaching to them he quoted one entire chapter of Isaiah — as we find
recorded in the twenty-second chapter of Third Nephi. That quotation
by our Lord is practically identical with the fifty-fourth chapter of
Isaiah. I speak of the chapters as we now have them. I repeat,

ELDER JAMES E. TALMAGE

Jesus Christ quoted to the Nephites almost word for word what Isaiah
had written in what we now know as the fifty-fourth chapter of his
book. Then the Lord said : "And now, behold, I say unto you, that ye
ought to search these things. Yea, a commandment I give unto you
that ye search these things diligently ; for great are the words of Isaiah."

This is the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ. In other places,
before his death, he had cited Isaiah. While in the flesh he quoted from
that prophet, and from the latter chapters of the book, which modern
critics say are not the words of Isaiah. By way of further illustration read
John 12 :38, wherein we find the citation from the fifty-third chapter
of Isaiah, which modern 'critics affirm was not written by Isaiah the
Prophet; and in the fortieth verse of the same chapter appears a
citation from the sixth chapter of Isaiah, which part the critics do
ascribe to Isaiah himself.

But be it remembered that the critics who thus seek to rend,
mutilate and generally discredit the Book of Isaiah are not the only ones
whose voice should be heard in so important a matter. They have no
monopoly of the truth, and when they die wisdom will not perish with
them. A great institution of wide influence, The Philosophical Society
of Great Britain, otherwise known as the Victoria Institute, has taken
up the matter of the unity of Isaiah, and has pointed out the. errors
of the critics with respect to the claim of duality, thus registering its
decision that the Book of Isaiah is a unit, written by the son of Amoz,
the prophet whom the Lord verily loved.

STUDENTS AND TEACHERS, BE CONSISTENT AND TRUE TO YOUR TESTIMONY

Regretfully I find that in some of our theological classes, and in
our seminaries, not only pupils but teachers are following after that
false lead and are segregating the words of the Book of Isaiah, part
as being his and other portions as the works of another. Could there
be a grosser inconsistency than that of proclaiming a belief in the
divine inconsistency than that of proclaiming a belief in the divine
authenticity of the Book of Mormon while teaching or believing that
the Book of Isaiah is other than what it purports to be — the writings of
Isaiah the son of Amoz throughout?

I cannot feel those in our Church schools and seminaries who put
the theories of men above the revelations of God have any rightful
place among the teachers in our theological institutions, whether quo-
rum classes, seminaries, or Church school of any name or grade.

DIFFERENCES IN STYLE OF WRITING

On what, you may ask, do these critics base this segregation of
chapters and verses, as to authorship, in the Book of Isaiah? On two
points: First comes the difference in style of composition. The only
part of the Book of Isaiah, which is admitted to have been written by
the prophet, is worded generally in a spirit of sadness; the tone or
color is that of depression, dark presage, as befits the subject. The
author is telling of the calamities that will come upon Israel unless they

GENERAL CONFERENCE

repent and turn from their wicked ways. The picture is painted in
dark colors. The latter part of the book, from the fortieth chapter on,
is more joyous, much more cheerful The author is speaking of the
triumph that shall eventually come to God's people. The critics say
that Isaiah could not have written in these strikingly different styles.
Do you find any modern writer telling a sorrowful tale in happy and
exultant words? ;Ts it so that one writer cannot inscribe a story of
grief and at another time a story of surpassing joy? Our literature
contradicts the thought ! Think of the two splendid poems by Milton,
his twin pictures, "L' Allegro" and "II Penseroso," known to most of
our students of literature. One is a picture of pessimism, pensiveness,
and gloom; the other a scene of optimism, joy and gaiety. There could
not be greater contrast. Milton could adapt his style to his theme and
did so spendidly; but Isaiah, preaching and speaking under the in-
spiration of the living- God, could not do it, according to the critics who
have assailed his work.

BE TRUE TO YOUR TESTIMONY!

To my younger brothers and sisters, to my student friends, I say
stand by your testimony. When you have received it from the Lord,
let it be your guide. It will be no handicap to you in your researches,
your studies, your explorations and. investigations. It will not detract
from your reputation for learning, if you deserve any such reputation,
provided you stand by the truth. As you know, in the Book of Mormon
we have that wonderful story of the iron rod seen by Lehi. To those
of you who want to explore I say, in all earnestness, tie fast your guide
rope to the rod of iron, which is defined as the Word of God. Hold to
it firmly, and you may venture out into the region of the unexplored
in search of truth if you will ; but do not loosen your hold on the
rope ; and remember that there is very little safety in holding to a rope
that is loose at both ends.

By following this course I have had many satisfying explanations
of questions that troubled me. Let me illustrate. It hast been the general
conception that certain animals known to have existed on the eastern
hemisphere were not to be found on the western hemisphere in Nephite
times ; but in the Book of Mormon I find record, positive and simple,
that certain of these animals were found by Lehi and his colony. Now,
the testimony that the Lord had given me as to the integrity of the
Book of Mormon did not furnish me with all details by which I could
confront the evidence that was being gathered, which was all of a
negative character, relating to the alleged non-existence of the horse
and other animals upon the western continent at the time indicated.
Some of you may say that as you do not find, ordinarily at least, the
bones of buffaloes in this section, that buffaloes never lived here. But
go search in the gravels of City Creek, and you may be lucky enough to
find, as I have found, the bones and horns of buffaloes. One shred
of positive evidence will nullify a volume of negative assumption; and
the declarations made in the Book of Mormon, if not already verified,
will surely be verified every whit.

ELDER JAMES E. TALMAGE

The Book of Mormon is not to be judged according to the canons
of criticism applicable to any book professing to be the product of a
modern brain, any more than is the Holy Bible to be so judged. Each
of these is a volume of scripture, profusedly giving the revealed word
of God.

REJECTION OF PROPHECY

The second objection made by the critics as to accepting Isaiah as
a, unit is based on the prophet's mention of King Cyrus, the Persian, a
century and a half before Cyrus was born. As King Cyrus is named,
the record containing the account of him, says the critics, could not
have been written until after his birth, reign, and accomplishment of the
divinely-appointed work ascribed to him by the prophet ; in short, they
say, that account must have been written by somebody who lived after
Cyrus, the Persian king. Is there no prophecy? Are there no prophets?
And, by the way, is Cyrus, the Persian, the only one whose name was
given before birth? What of Ishmael, of Isaac, of John the Baptist?
What of the Lord Christ himself? Their names were all prescribed and
recorded long before their respective births.

Josephus, the Jewish historian, knew nothing of the alleged duality
of the Book of Isaiah ; for he tells us that Isaiah's prophecy was pre-
sented to King Cyrus, named therein, and "that the fact of his own
name being in the text greatly encouraged him to carry out the pre-
diction."

Some of us are very apt to be led away by a statement because
we find it in a book bearing the name of some man assumed to be great.
Let us read in a more discriminating way, and seek for the guidance of
the Lord as we read.

I bear you witness, as witness has been borne before, and I speak
it to you with all the assurance that the Three Witnesses and the Eight
Witnesses put their testimony on record — that the Book of Mormon is
just what it claims to be, as set forth by the ancient historian and
prophet, the translation of whose words appears on the title page of the
current work. There is nothing in the Book of Mormon to be explained
away. The Book teaches, explains, and expounds ; it will settle many
of your problems, it will guide you in the path of truth. I know of
what I speak for I have found it to be a reliable guide. Brethren and
sisters, hold fast to the iron rod. May God help us so to do, I pray in
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

A sacred solo, "Come Ye Blessed," was sung by Miss Rilla Wilson.
ELDER STEPHEN L. RICHARDS

THE LAW OF TITHING

My subject is tithing. I can scarcely hope to contribute a single
new thought to this matter, but I have felt that the importance of it
would serve to challenge your interest, and I have hoped that some good
might result from a discussion of it. For some things that I may say

GENERAL CONEERENCE

I acknowledge indebtedness to a little volume which has recently been
placed in my hands called, "Dealing Squarely With God."

THE RELATIONSHIP OF MONEY AND PROPERTY TO CHRISTIANITY

"You can usually tell the sincerity of a man's interest in anything
by the way he puts his money into it." Indeed it has been said that
the measure of a man's Christianity may be determined by the way
he gets and spends his money. It is said that Jesus had more to say
about money and property, strange as it may seem, than about any other
subject. In sixteen of thirty-eight of his parables money and property
are made his theme.

MONEY AND MYSELF

After all, "Is not money myself ? Money is the medium for which
men exchange their abilities, ingenuity and labor. When a man gives
his money he is giving himself, and. the way a man gives his money is
the way he gives himself. Money is myself. I am a laboring man, we
will say, and can wield a pickaxe and hire myself out for a week at
two dollars a day. At the close of the week I get twelve dollars and I
put it in my pocket. What is that twelve dollars? It is a week's worth
of my muscle put into greenbacks and pocketed. That is, I have got
a week's worth of myself in my pocket." So, when a man gives the
money that he has earned, he is giving literally of himself. Giving is
worship. We are commanded "not to appear before the Lord empty-
handed." Not that the Lord needs the gift, but that man needs to give.

TEST OF FAITH IS GIVING

The first principle of religion is recognition of God — faith. The
real test of that recognition is giving. By that test we may judge with
accuracy the religious attitude of our country. In a recent year statistics
reveal the fact that more money was spent for face powders and cos-
metics ; more for ice cream, soft drinks and chewing gum ; more for
cigarettes, respectively, than the total sum expended to support all
churches. May that not be a criterion by which we may safely judge the
religious attitude, the deep-set religious feeling of the people of the
country? Do not the words of Malachi seem pertinent:

"Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, wherein
have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings."

SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD

We do not rob God by withholding our gift in the sense that we
deprive him of the substance of earth. He always has that substance,
never relinquishing it. But we rob him of the satisfaction and the joy
that hq must feel when his children respond to his mandates and open
their hearts in giving and in worship. Someone has said, "God never
gives a quit-claim deed, he only grants a leasehold estate, and he who
receives the lease must ever return the rental."

ELDER STEPHEN L. RICHARDS

BOUGHT WITH A PRICE

Now the Lord has commanded that a rental be returned for all
the substance and for all the blessings which he has given to his chil-
dren. Christ bought us with a price, so we are told in the scripture.
Is it to be thought that we are to gain salvation without a price, with-
out giving and paying for it? When we speak of paying in this sense
we do not mean that pay which is given as if in barter, but we mean the
return of substance which is committed to our stewardship and which
we hold in trust for the one who has so blessed us.

PARTNERSHIP WITH GOD

I like "to think of the Lord as a partner, because the essence of
partnership is a sharing of profits. It is however indispensable in a
partnership that there shall also be a sharing of the burdens of the
enterprise. The honor and the satisfaction that come to one in realiza-
tion that he lives his life in partnership with God is to me a lofty and
exalting thought. One cannot hope to realize the profits from that
venture without bearing his portion of the expense — the giving which
is requisite.

PAYMENT OF DUES

The Church generally is probably the only society in the world
where a man is not suspended from membership for failure to pay
his dues. I think that in substantially every other organized body of
men for social or material gain if a man fails to pay his stipulated
contribution he is dropped. While the Church does not drop from
membership those who fail to pay, I feel very certain that those who
fail to pay their stipulated portion are automatically dropped from the
real advantages of Church participation and the blessings that inure
from inactivity within it.

THRIFT HABITS

"Prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open
you the windows of heaven," speaking to those whom he had admonished
to pay their tithes and offerings. What comes from the windows of
heaven? Both temporal and spiritual blessings. Temporal blessings accrue
largely from the cultivation of thrift habits. The payment of tithes of
necessity compels an orderly arrangement of one's affairs. Accounting is
indispensable. Budgeting is necessary. Saving follows. All of which
are necessary to financial success.

ECONOMY

It was Victor Hugo who said : "Above all, teach the children to save.
Economy is the sure foundation for all virtues." I heard a banker say
not long ago that if tithing served no other purpose than to secure an
orderly adjustment of one's affairs, a budgeting of the income and ex-
penses, it would be invaluable. I feel sure that he who pays his tithes
not only has a better conception of economy, but he is indulging in a

GENERAL CONFERENCE

practice which will bring him into better thrift habits and enable him to
go forward toward financial prosperity.

SPIRITUAL POWER

Observance of tithing brings spiritual power, and after all that
to me is the main thing. Religion is more than mere repose or re-
laxation. It is positive spiritual exercise. It makes for the growth
of the soul, it cultivates all of the virtues. So one who is serious about
religion will be willing to give to it the things which are necessary and
the things which are vital to himself.

HONESTY

One who is honest with God is apt to be honest with his neighbor
and with his employer. The need of honesty is attested everywhere and
particularly in our own communities by defalcations, the extent and
magnitude of which make us all blush with shame. I can scarcely con-
ceive of a man who is honest with his God not being honest with his
fellow man ; and I can well advocate the payment of our tithing in a
straightforward, square, honest way as being a safe foundation on
which to build those principles of integrity that shall make honest men
and women in the community.

NEED OF THE TITHE

The need of the tithe in the prosecution of God's work must be
apparent to all of you. There are so many avenues in which sums may be
expended to promote the work that J can scarcely take time to mention
them. Not long ago I had the privilege of traveling in one of the
missions of the Church. I was delighted to observe that in many rural
sections which are not in the van of our progress and civilization the
Church has caused to be erected inexpensive but beautiful small chapels.
I could well conceive the influence that these chapels might exert not
only in the furtherance of our religious views, but in their effect on the
home life, the community life, the habits and practices of the people.
These little chapels were clean and orderly, and I am sure they will
bring an inspiration to many hundreds of home-owners to clean up their
establishments, to live in an orderly and a more beautiful way. If
the Church were endowed with sufficient means these little chapels could
be extended throughout the whole land and would bring wonderfully
beneficent results.

USE OF TITHING FUNDS

With our temples large sums of money are required. Think of
the great work of redemption there performed. Our whole missionary
cause is, in large measure, dependent upon the financial support that
comes to the Church and also that which comes to those who are called
on missions. There is a very definite relation between the finances of
our people and the propagation of the Gospel of Christ. There is a
very definite relation between missionary work and debt. I propose

ELDER STEPHEN L. RICHARDS

this constructive principle of the Gospel embraced in the law of tithing
as a solution for many of our financial problems, as a foundation upon
which men may build to bring themselves in a position to accept the calls
that come to them to spread the great truths which are committed to our
custody.

ENJOYMENT OF TITHE PAYING

Every man who pays his tithing should enjoy it. The Gospel of
Christ is a gospel of enjoyment. "Man is that he may have joy."
When one pays his tithing without enjoyment he is robbed of a part
of the blessing. He must learn to give cheerfully, willingly and joy-
fully, and his gift will be blessed. In order that he may receive more
enjoyment he needs to pay more frequently. Why deprive oneself of
the joy that comes from this voluntary giving until the end of the year,
when by payments throughout the year we may increase and enhance not
only the joy of our giving but the practice of it.

MONTHLY PAYMENTS

I have found it to be a very difficult problem in mathematics to
pay one-tenth out of one-twelfth. I commend that thought to those who
are receiving monthly stipends and who indulge the practice of paying
their tithing at the close of the year. I am sure you will find it very
difficult indeed to get the tenth out of the twelfth if your tithing
remains for payment until the last month. I can heartily recommend
to you the payment of your tithes as your funds come into your hands,
not only because it will be easier, but because greater blessings will
inure to you.

CONSECRATION

We consecrate our lives in this Church to the advancement of the
cause of God. There is no higher evidence of that consecration than
this giving which has been enjoined upon us by the Lord. "He who
gives himself with his gift feeds three — himself, his hungering neighbor
and me." So the law of tithing is the epitome of the Gospel. It is
genuine worship and true recognition of the sovereignty of God. It is
real consecration, the giving of the muscle and energy of life to the
cause ; and it begets the abundant life of love and service for which the
Christ came. It is a measurement of true religion. By the extent of
its observance every man may determine for himself the vitality of his
own faith and love of God. A prophet has said, "The tenth shall be holy
unto the Lord." It will be holy unto you, men and women of Israel, if
you give it lovingly, joyfully, willingly, to the great cause. God help
us so to do, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Miss Bertha Sessions rendered a sacred solo entitled 'Tmmortalis."

GENERAL CONFERENCE

ELDER JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH

I trust that I may be led by the Spirit of the Lord to say something
this afternoon that will be profitable.

A CRITICAL TIME

One of our speakers yesterday said that we were living in a very
critical time. For many years we have been living in peace and com-
parative prosperity, we have had no contentions with our neighbors ;
on the surface at least their feelings have been kindly, and apparently
everything has been in the nature of peace and prosperity. But these
are the times when Latter-day Saints should take heed concerning the
revelations of the Lord and desire to keep his commandments with
full purpose of heart, more perhaps than at any other time.

The Lord said in a revelation given in the early days of the Church :

"And I now give unto you a commandment to beware concerning your-
selves, to give diligent heed to the words of eternal life.

"Fori ye shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth
of God."

INGRATITUDE IN TIMES OF PROSPERITY

In the days of our prosperity, when we are at peace, when we have
the luxuries as well as the necessities of life, there may be a tendency
on our part to forget the Lord. This seems to be a failing of humanity.
We are taught this lesson all down through the ages so far as the people
of the Lord are concerned, as we read of them in the Holy Scriptures.
|In Palestine as well as upon this continent, when the people were
prospered they forgot the Lord. They turned from him and felt self-
sufficient rather than to feel the spirit of humility and to put faith in
the Lord, and to thank him for his blessings.

The crime of ingratitude is one of the most prevalent and I might
say at the same time one of the greatest with which mankind is afflicted.
The more the Lord blesses us the less we love him. That is the way men
show their gratitude unto the Lord for his mercies and his blessings
towards them.

THE WORDS OF THE BOOK OF MORMON

I recommend to you, I shall not take time to refer further to it.
the words of King Benjamin to his people as he gathered them around
him, and taught them to keep the commandments of the Lord. You will
find these things recorded in the first chapters of the book of Mosiah
in the Book of Mormon.

I want to read, because I think these words are better than any
that I might give you, from the 12th chapter of the Book of Helaman.
These words, it would appear, were written by Mormon after record-
ing some of the conflicts between the Nephites and the Lamanites and

ELDER JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH

the destruction which came upon the people because they had forsaken
the Lord :

"And thus we can 'behold how false, and also the unsteadiness of the
hearts of the children of men; yea, we can see that the Lord in his great in-
finite goodness doth bless and prosper those who put their trust in him.

"Yea, and we may see at the very time when he doth prosper his people,
yea, in the increase of their fields, their flocks and their herds, and in gold,
and in silver, and in all manner of precious things of every kind and art;
sparing their lives and delivering them out of the hands of their enemies;
softening the hearts of their enemies that they should not declare war against
them; yea, and in fine, doing all things for the welfare and happiness of his
people; yea, then is the time that they do harden their hearts, and do forget
the Lord their God, and do trample under their feet the Holy One — yea,
and this because of their ease, and their exceedingly great prosperity.

"And thus we see that except the Lord doth chasten his people with
many afflictions, yea, except he doth visit them with death and with terror,
and with famine and with all manner of pestilence, they will not remember
him.

"O, how foolish, and how vain, and how evil, and devilish, and how
quick to do iniquity, and how slow to do good, are the children of men;
yea, how quick to hearken unto the words of the evil one, and to set their
hearts' upon the vain things of the world!

"Yea, how quick to be lifted up in pride; yea, how quick to boast, and
do all manner of that which is iniquity; and how slow are they to remember
the Lord their God, and to give ear unto his counsels, yea, how slow to walk
in wisdom's paths!

"Behold, they do not desire that the Lord their God, who hath created
them, should rule/ and reign over them; notwithstanding his great goodness
and his mercy towards- them, they do set at naught his counsels, and they
will not that he should be their guide.

"O, how great is the nothingness of the children of men; yea, even they
are less than the dust of the earth.

"For behold, the dust of the earth moveth hither and thither, to the
dividing asunder, at the command of our great and everlasting God."

ALL THINGS OBEDIENT EXCEPT MAN

Now this prophet did not mean to say that the Lord has greater
concern for and loves the dust of the earth more than he does his chil-
dren. He did not mean to say that we, the children of the Lord, in
his sight are considered less than the dust of the earth. The point he is
making is that the dust of the earth is obedient. It moveth hither -and
thither at the command of the Lord. All things are in harmony with
his laws. Everything in the universe obeys the law given unto it, so far
as I know, except man. Everywhere you look you find law and order,
the elements obeying the law given to them, true to their calling. But
man rebels, and in this thing man is less than the dust of the earth
because he rejects the counsels of the Lord, and the greater the bless-
ings he receives, (this because of his agency), the more willingly does
he turn from the source of those blessings, feeling self-sufficient, and
puts his faith and his trust in the arm of flesh rather than in God.

KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS

I want to endorse the remarks that were made here yesterday,
wherein we were instructed and reminded to keep the commandments of

GENERAL CONFERENCE

the Lord, to observe the Sabbath day, to keep the Word of Wisdom, to
pray, to attend to the various duties that are given unto us as members
of the Church and men holding the priesthood ; to live, in other words,
in accordance with every word that proceeds forth from the mouth
of God.

NECESSITY OF CONSTANT INSTRUCTIONS AND GUIDANCE

Why should we be under the necessity constantly of being reminded
of the Word of Wisdom, of the law of tithing, the duty that is upon us
to pray and thank our Father in heaven for his many blessings? Yet
we find that it is necessary constantly to call the attention of the saints
to these things, to instruct them, to guide them, so that we may be
kept always in the path of duty and righteousness. Otherwise they
fall into error. What a wonderful thing it is the Lord has given us
by revelation, this privilege of meeting together in conference as we
are now, and from time to time in the stake conferences and in the
various other meetings, to be instructed! In these meetings we are
taught the principles of the Gospel, and admonished when it is neces-
sary. If we were not it would only be a short time until we would find
the different branches of the Church and various stakes falling apart
and doing things in different ways, and to some extent at least falling
from grace, failing to keep the commandments of the Lord and to walk
in his righteousness. The Lord has provided ample means by which we
may be instructed and taught, that we may be one in all things.

BLESSINGS CONTINGENT UPON OBEDIENCE

Now, my brethren and sisters, in this time of peace — I do not
know how long it will last — in this day of prosperity, let us be humble
and remember the Lord ana! keep his commandments and feel that the
dangers before us are far greater than they are in the days of trial and
tribulation. Do* not think for a moment that the days of trial are over.
They are not. If we keep the commandments of the Lord we shall
prosper, we shall be blessed ; the plagues, the calamities that have been
promised will be poured out upon the peoples of the earth and we
shall escape them, yea, they shall pass us by. But remember the Lord
says if we fail to keep his word, if we walk in the ways of the world,
they will not passj us by, but we shall be visited with floods and with
fire, with sword and with plague and destruction. We may escape these
things through faithfulness. Israel of old might have escaped through
faithfulness, but they refused to keep the commandments of the Lord
and they were not saved. Therefore I plead with you: pay your
tithing, keep the <Word of Wisdom, pray unto the Lord, honor
him in all things by keeping his commandments, that his blessings may-
be poured out and that we may receive them in abundance, and in
humility we may walk before him and be entitled not only to the bless-
ings that come to us in this mortal life, but to the blessings of eternal
life, the greatest gift of God. So I pray in the name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.

ELDER WJLLIAM R. SLOAN

ELDER WILLIAM R. SLOAN

President of the Northzvestern States Mission

I have enjoyed the spirit of this conference. I am happy to repre-
sent before you the work as it is progressing in the Northwestern
States mission.

We sang as the second hymn yesterday morning, "Guide us, O
Thou great Jehovah, Guide us to the Promised land." Then, as we sang
the second stanza : "Open, Jesus, Zion's fountains, Let her richest bless-
ings come," I could not help but feel, surely the blessings and the rich
blessings have come to this people.

A year and a half ago, in holding conferences with my missionaries,
I asked these questions of each group : "What has your mission done
for you? What have you done for the mission?" One elder re-
ported: "President Sloan, I sat down the other evening and 1 wrote
page upon page of the things that my mission has done for me. Then,"
he said, "when I tried to write : 'What have I done for the mission ?' I
could scarcely fill one page." If that question were put to us indi-
vidually: "What has the Church done for us?" I wonder if the richer
blessings, many of them, have not come. I see before me these wonderful
volumes, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, the Pearl
of Great Price ; I see a great organization with ten hundred eighty-four
wards, with one hundred one stakes of Zion. I see a great growth of
buildings, chapels, schools, and seminaries throughout all the land, an
evidence of God's blessings to us as his children. Brethren and sisters,
what are we doing for the Church?

A few months ago, one of our splendid good girls in Portland,
working for a large firm, received her pay-check and as she wa|
returning home she lost her hand-bag. Upon reaching her home she dis-
covered the loss. It contained her money, the earnings of a mouth's
work. She felt very sorrowful about it, but advertised in the paper. Two
or three days later the telephone rang. She answered the phone,
and a lady at the other end asked her name, so on and so forth.
She had found her hand-bag. She said : "As I looked through it I
found your money and I found receipts, and among other receipts
I found one for tithing to your Church. I thought Tf that little girl
is honest enough to pay her tithing, I can't keep this money form her.' "
She said further: "I had made up my mind that I would not return the
purse, but I am returning it to you now, happily."

May I be personal just a minute and recount an experience of my
own. On the 19th of October, 1926, I was invited into the office of
President Grant and his counselors. I don't know if you may have had
that experience, but to me it was new. I shall never be able to recount
my feelings as T went and sat in the presence of these wonderful, good
men. When the presidency had revealed to me the purpose for which
they had invited me there, that it was to ask me to preside over a mission,
I can never describe my feelings. Then I returned home, and I did so
in tears, all the way. That night when we retired, I lay in my bed not

GENERAL CONFERENCE

able to close my eyes in sleep. Sleep had vanished, and I wrestled
with the Lord, in tears, all night. I pleaded with the Father, "What
can I, a weak mortal, do in such a mission as that?" The prayer was
answered, and a voice spoke to me as I am speaking to you : "The Book
of Mormon." My prayer was answered.

A month and a half later I went to the mission. When I heard the
reports read in conference at Seattle on the 19th of December of that
year, I found that we had distributed 1850 copies of the Book of Mor-
mon. President Young said: "President Sloan, would you like to
speak a few minutes ?" I said, "Yes." I arose. The Spirit came, and
I told the missionaries that for 1927 we would expect 18,000 copies of
that book distributed in the mission. I shall never forget the reaction
as it came to me. It seemed to me as if I sat alone, except for the
Spirit of the Lord, as it had been given. At the end of the year,
brethren and sisters, we had succeeded, the Lord had blessed us ; and in
1928, I am happy to tell you, our mission distributed" approximately
21,000 copies of that wonderful book. I want to tell you that there
is no book in all the world from which a man or woman can gain the
spirit of the Gospel more than by reading that wonderful volume.

My time is up. I am happy to report and to bring the love and
confidence of the missionaries of the Northwestern States. They are a
nohle, sweet, wonderful group of young men and women. They are
working hard. I bring you this report, fathers and mothers, from the
mission.

When President George F. Richards was in Portland, laying the
corner stone of our new chapel, we asked Doctor Irvine, the blind editor
of the Portland Journal, to be one of our speakers. That most wonderful
man stood there and paid tribute to this Church and to our achieve-
ments. In his closing remarks this is what he said : "Your creed, my
freinds, is a gentle, sweet, lovable creed. Your doctrines are beautiful
as if they came from the hand of God." So I bear testimony that this
work is not of man, but it is of God, and it will succeed through his
help. For this I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

ELDER HENRY H. ROLAPP

Former President of the Eastern States Mission

Dear brethren and sisters, I stand before you as a recently-released
president of the Eastern States mission. :I have been succeeded by
President James FI. Moyle whom you heard yesterday. I was appointed
to succeed President B. H. Roberts who had filled that mission so
wonderfully well. I report to you that when I left the mission it was
in excellent condition. We have done wonderfully well. In that mission
we have baptized about two hundred non-Mormons during each year,
in addition to many of the children of the saints.

The Lord has not blessed me with any ability to make great
speeches, hut I had an excellent corps of young men and young women
to do that for me. I just traveled around amongst them and heard of

ELDER HENRY H. ROLAPP

our progress and of the little things of the Gospel % used to talk to
them about. I talked to them about the value of prayer, and I am sure
that I have never seen greater evidences of improvement in that direction
than I did during my time in the Eastern States mission. I talked to
them about observing the Sabbath day, and I am confident that among
the Latter-day Saints of that mission there was a strict observance of
the Lord's Day. I talked to them about keeping the Word of Wisdom,
and T want to say to you that in my opinion that word was thoroughly
observed in the Eastern States mission. I talked to the missionaries
about their loyalty and faithfulness, and it has been a great satisfaction
to me to find that the testimony of the Gospel has come to those young
missionaries after they have been in the mission a comparatively short
time.

I want to say to you fathers and mothers that those missionaries,
those boys and those girls, and those older men who came as short
term missionaries have done a wonderfully fine work. They thoroughly
believed in the Gospel, and they had a testimony of it, after they had
been in the mission a very short time. Fortunately most of the young
people that came into the mission had been good Sunday School people.
They had been good model people, but they knew comparatively little
about the Gospel of Christ. Yet, by some miracle the Lord permitted
his Spirit to come upon them, and I am sure that in ninety-seven cases,
if not more, out of every hundred, within one year they could stand
up and preach the Gospel, knowingly.

I talked to them about the law of tithing, and it is observed in the •
Eastern States mission averagely better than it is in Zion. The Saints
in the Eastern States mission are paying a higher percentage of tithing
than they are anywhere in the Church in Zion. To me the. law of
tithing is one of the great things of the Church. It is not a recom-
mendation ; it is a command. I find that ninety per cent of what I am
permitted to receive is quite sufficient for me. There is not one of you
who actually receives only ninety per cent of what he is earning that
is not wholly satisfied That other tenth does not belong to you ; it
belongs to the Lord. I taught that to the saints there.

We have a number of Germans coming into New York and into
Brooklyn, hundreds of them. They constitute more than sixty per cent
of the saints in Brooklyn, and about forty per cent of the saints in
New York. They have done wonderfully well. Their little tithing
comes in each Saturday night. They go and deliver it to their branch
president, and he gives them their receipt. T cannot think of a thousand
people among the many thousands we have in that mission who are not
full tithe-payers. I honor them, and I glory in it. I have found that
the Lord has blessed me each year with just a little bit more^ because
I was willing to observe that law. I have told that to the saints, and
they believed it.

I am thankful to the First Presidency for calling me on a mission,
and I am indeed thankful to the Lord that! I was called on' a mission.
It has given me a greater insight into the work of the missionaries and

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into the faith of the Latter-day Saints than I could have received in any
other way. I am delighted to have been on a mission. I feel sure that
the testimony that I have will continue with me during the few years
that I shall yet live. I am glad that I have had this opportunity. It
will be a heritage to my sons, to know that their father has been on a
mission, as they have been on missions, and that we have done our
part in furthering the work of the Lord. God grant that the spirit of
serving God may always be strong in the hearts of the saints, that
there may always be a desire to do the will of the Lord, and they shall
be blessed. God grant us this spirit, for Christ's sake. Amen.

ELDER ERNEST C. ROSSITER

Former President of the French Mission

My brethren and sisters and kind friends, I feel honored, and I
am indeed happy this morning in being called to the stand to report
on my labors during the time that I was in the French mission, and
to bear my testimony to the truthfulness of this Gospel.

I am happy to see such a vast congregation this morning, the largest
that it has been my privilege to address, il assure you, that I feel my
weakness and pray that God will be merciful to me in the few remarks
which I may have to make this morning.

I feel that it is an honor to be a member of this Church, and
especially so, to be able to go out into the world and preach unto the
people, many thousands of whom are seeking after the truth which we
have to give unto them.

The French mission today is in a very prosperous condition. We
are getting into the hearts of the real French people. I am happy to
tell you that we are not only converting the Protestants among the
French, but also a great many of the devout Catholic people, many
of them very well educated. The First Presidency have been very kind
to us in giving us a greater number of missionaries the last three years,
which has enabled us to expand into France. Fleretofore our efforts
have been confined to Belgium and Swiss Roman. There are in France
a great many people who have the blood of Israel in their veins. We
feel that we are developing a very splendid mission in that country,
and that it will be only a few years hence when we will be able to make
a very splendid showing and that the French mission will come to the
fore, as have all the other European' missions. At the time I left the
mission field we had about fifty-three missionaries, and all of them
are real missionaries, doing a splendid work, learning the language in a
remarkable way. That has been one of our tasks, to persuade our mis-
sionaries to learn the French; language and speak it to the people in an
intelligent and pleasing way to them, because in that way we are able
to please the people and make friends of them.

France has produced some very splendid people throughout the
world in the Protestant field as well as in the Catholic field. The

ELDER ERNEST C. ROSSITER

Huguenots came from France largely, went into Switzerland, some into
the new world, and thousands of them have accepted the Gospel. The
Normans who were in Northern France, went to England, many of
them ; and it is from that class of people that my family has come. I
am therefore very much interested in the French people, because I have
French blood in my veins.

During the last three years I believe we have made more progress
in the French mission than in many years previous, from the fact that
we have had more opportunity to reach out among the French people.
We have opened up new ways and means to find them, preaching the
Book of Mormon, that wonderful book which was so well explained
to you by Doctor Talmage this morning. I was very much interested
in his remarks. That is getting into the hearts of the French people.
The stereoptican views have attracted thousands of people to our
meetings. That is one means we have of showing people the real
facts about Salt Lake and Zion. The French people have always had
an erroneous opinion of our people, having heard' only of the evil, the
bad side, the false reports. Only recently we held a mission presidents'
conference in Paris, which resulted in a vast amount of good. The
newspapers opened up their columns to fair publication of our doctrines,
which resulted in a wider investigation, and that publication was spread
throughout the world. We received many inquiries through letters and
personal inquiries from people asking how they could become members
of the Church. We feel that the work is just getting a fair start among
the French people. Your missionaries who have been called to that
land can consider themselves blessed and honored. There is no greater
opportunity for any missionary than can come to him through a call to
the French mission. The progress, the advancement, the education, the
learning of a modern language, for which he can get credit in his
school, and the personal development which comes to him, are wonderful
things. The fathers and mothers of the boys in the French mission can
consider themselves blessed through having their sons in that mission
at the present time.

T wish to bear my testimony to the divinity of this work. I know,
my brethren and sisters, that God lives and that he is a remunerator
of all those who diligently seek him. I do know that this Gospel is
true. God has revealed it to me through his Holy Spirit. I can truth-
fully say that I have a burning testimony within my bosom of this
great work and only hope that I may be able to retain that testimony
to the end of my days, when I shall again see my Maker, meet him
face to face and talk with him. I bear you my testimony that our
present presidency, the prophets of this Church, are indeed inspired to
carry on this work, and I stand ready at any time to serve them as best
I can, because in serving I know that great blessings come to those who
will do it willingly. I desire to continue on in this work the best I know
how. May God bless us all in our endeavors to serve him, I ask it
in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

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PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

'I wish to announce that Brother Rossiter who has just spoken to
you is forty-six years of age, and that he has spent thirteen years of
his life as a missionary, or over twenty-five per cent of his life thus
far. If you will deduct the years of his childhood and teens you will
find that the greater portion of his life has been given to proclaiming
the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

I am convinced that service of this kind is one of the strongest
testimonies of the divinity of this work that can come to a thoughtful
man. It seems to me that nothing short of an abiding knowledge of the
divinity of the work in which we are engaged would cause a man to
give so much of his life's labor — giving the very best that is in him —
for the spread of the truth.

ELDER ELIAS S. WOODRUFF

President of the Western States Mission

I am very grateful that it has been my privilege to be called into
the ministry and particularly into the mission field, and for the expe-
rience of associating with the saints who reside in the branches scattered
throughout the missions, and with the elders and sisters who have been
called there as missionaries. We are trying to appreciate the privileges
Gospel to the people of the Western States district. We rely upon
to make ourselves feel and understand that we are instruments —
poorly prepared though we may be — through which our heavenly
Father expects to carry on the work of bringing the message of the
Gospel to the people of the. Western States District. We rely upon
the blessings of the Lord rather than upon our own intelligence or
learning. We have learned and are learning by experience, that if we
may enjoy the association of the Holy Ghost and its inspiration and
guidance we will be more successful than if we attempt to rely upon
ourselves. If the Lord is to perform a marvelous work and a wonder,
which he is doing, it will have to be performed through the material
that is available ; and if the material available is willing to serve, willing
to try to do what the Lord wants us to do by his great power and
wisdom, he will have no great difficulty in performing the marvelous
work and a wonder.

The Lord has blessed us in the Western States mission. We are
meeting with success in our labors. Our tithing has increased this year
over last year, up to the end of this first quarter, even as it did last
year over the previous year. We are able to, and are distributing more
pamphlets and selling and loaning more copies of the Book of Mormon
than we did last year. We are grateful for the opportunity that is
given us to do it.

We have little prejudice to contend with. Generally speaking, the
people receive us with great kindness, very little abuse. I was thinking of
what Elder Joseph Fielding Smith stated this morning with reference

ELDER ELLAS S. WOODRUFF

to that. I have wondered why we meet with so little opposition and
with practically no persecution. I have tried to caution first myself
and then my associates against a feeling of security, the feeling that all
is well with us, because we seem to get along so well. I sincerely
hope that we will never feel so secure that we will forget the protecting
care of the Lord which is over us, or forget his blessings.

The Lord is blessing our branches. The branches of the Western
States mission are growing in interest, in attendance and in activity.
I wish to relate to you one incident which has to me been very faith-
inspiring. I will not name the branch. That is unnecessary. Suffice
it to say, one of our branches has received a great financial blessing
at the hands of the Lord, by being obedient to his requirements. The
history of this branch has been rather unfortunate. There was con-
tention among its members, lack of appreciation of each other's virtues,
a falling down in their payment of tithes and offerings, sometimes a
lack] of attendance at their meetings ; and the branch had in a measure
divided itself, so that there were two factions in it. We, (myself
and associate missionaries), were holding a conference there
last June. The Spirit of the Lord seemed to say to me: "Prophesy
to this people that if they will love each other and keep the command-
ments of the Lord, the Lord will bless them." 1 was fearful that it
was not .the Spirit of the Lord directing me ; therefore, I did not give
voice to the impressions that came to me until the last meeting we held.
By the way, we stayed there three days. At the close of the last meet-
ing, I could no longer resist the feeling that seemed to be upon me. I
promised those people in the name of the Lord, by prophecy, that if
they would repent of their weaknesses, if they would love each other,
and support each other, if they would pay their tithes and their offerings,
the Lord would relieve them of their financial distress. They had a
large dam and a reservoir without water in it. The impression came
to me very distinctly; "Do not promise them that the reservoir will
be filled." I said : "jl do not promise you that the reservoir will be
filled, but I do promise you that the way will be opened that your crops
will be irrigated; you will be prospered and you will be happy if you
will do these things." They sincerely accepted what I said. I went
away from there feeling very humble. I can tell you now after nine
months have passed by, that the reservoir has not been filled, but the
legislature of the state in which they reside has appropriated $25,000.00
to help them build another reservoir. They are building on a stream
that flows into their fields. Another party has given one of them a
contract to get out three million feet of timber. They increased their
tithing in 1928 nearly fifty per cent over the previous year. The Lord
is answering with a blessing upon their heads. The president of that
district wrote me a letter, giving me these facts, with great appreciation.
The Lord's protecting care is over us, he is blessing us, and we are
grateful to be under his dominion.

I pray that he will bless the Church and every member thereof,
and above all, his servants who preside in the Church, that the work

GENERAL CONFERENCE

of the Lord may be carried on as he would have it, through Jesus
Christ. Amen.

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

We try always, at these conferences, to hear from all the General
Authorities, also from mission presidents who have been recently re-
leased, and from those who have come in from their mission fields for
conference and will return thereto. We have at the present time forty-
two General Authorities, recently retired mission presidents, and pres-
idents who will return to their respective missions. We therefore find
it necessary to ask the speakers to be brief in their remarks.

President Grant, in announcing the closing hymn, "O Say, What is
Truth?" to be sung by the congregation, said: "This hymn was written
by one of the most loyal and faithful members of the Church, the late
John Jacques, and was the favorite hymn of our well-beloved departed
President, Anthon H. Lund."

After the singing of the hymn the benediction was pronounced by
Elder Danford M. Bickmore, President of the Hyrum Stake.
Conference adjourned until 2 o'clock p. m.

AFTERNOON MEETING

The meeting commenced at 2 o'clock p. m.
President Heber T. Grant presided.

The congregation sang the hymn, "Come, Come, Ye Saints."
Elder Charles S. Clark of the Cassia Stake offered the invocation.
The Chaminade Ladies' Chorus, under the direction of Prof.
Anthony C. Lund, sang a sacred selection, "Holy Father."

ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD

1 am reading from Paul's epistle to the Galatians :

"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that
shall he also reap.

"For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he
that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting."

Years ago, Sister Snow, one of our gifted poetesses, wrote a hymn,
the first lines of which are:

"The trials of the present day
Require the Saints to watch and pray,
That they may keep the narrow way
To the Celestial glory."

The trials which she referred to were not the kind we are now
familiar with. The trials of her day were of mob violence, of hardship,
of struggle and strife.

ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD

As we heard this morning, we have passed beyond that period of the
Church's: history, and yet we are not without our trials. They are of a
different character, and sti# they require the saints to watch and pray
if we are to preserve ourselves in the way to celestial glory.

THE PRESENT GENERATION

I am not one of those who find pleasure in condemning this gen-
eration. I have a deep sympathy for the young people of our time. I
believe they arej as good at heart as their parents. Indeed I feel that
God has kept them in reserve, as he did their fathers and mothers, to
come forth in an age wh*n he needs them ; and that they also can be
made true and faithful. I feel, however, that no other generation has
ever needed wisdom, guidance, and help as much as does this generation
of young people. They are in a new world, face to face with con-
ditions quite unlike those that obtained in the time of their parents.
So that my quarrel shall not be with them so much as with conditions
that they must meet. I have a spirit of patience and of charity towards
them. Yet I feel in my heart an anxious desire to awaken the members
of the Church to the need of lending parental aid and assistance to
these boys and girls, such aid and assistance as perhaps no other gen-
eration has really needed.

CORRUPTION OF MORALS BRINGS DESTRUCTION OF FAITH

I remember in my early childhood being considerably shocked by a
statement which appeared in this city from an enemy of the Church.
After having attempted to convert the young people of the Church
from the faith of their fathers and having failed, the suggestion was
made, that if you want to convert the young people of the Mormon
Church you cannot argue with them, you cannot attack the Book of
Mormon or Joseph Smith — but if you really want to convert them
corrupt them, build brothels, get them into these institutions, and have
their morals destroyed ; then you can easily turn them from their faith.

I believe that this is true, that the easiest way to destroy a man's
faith is to destroy his morality; that when his morals are corrupted
his faith totters ; he cannot stand, except he repent, of course.

METHODS OF THE ADVERSARY

So that I believe that while the enemy is not arraying men and
nations against the Church, he has not quit the field. Let us not be de-
ceived. With new methods, quite different from those employed in the
days of our fathers, he is diligently at work, using more effective means
to destroy, to corrupt, than he has ever used before; and the assaults
that he is making are against the individual himself.

,1 found in the missioif field it was utterly impossible for any man
to successfully attack the doctrines of this Church. When the elder
was thoroughly familiar with the teachings of the Church he could
defend the Church's position. I have never been afraid of such assaults,
I have never been afraid of mob violence nor of disasters that should

GENERAL CONFERENCE

come from the elements; but I have been afraid of the power of the
evil one to hurt this cause when he could corrupt the missionaries ; and
his favorite means of stopping the missionary is to get him to commit
sin. He was never more successful in stopping the Lord's work than
when he could induce the bearer of the message to sin and to transgress.
I have discovered in my own experience with hundreds of missionaries
that when the devil lays a snare for the feet of a missionary, he generally
baits the hook with a woman.

THE TRIALS OF PEACE AND PROSPERITY

We are in the age of self-indulgence. 'It is not peculiar to this
Church; it is in the world. The spirit of it is rampant everywhere.
It beats upon our shores from all points. It enters into the midst
of the people. It is a deadly siege in an attempt to destroy that which
persecution, mob violence, privation and hardship failed to destroy, —
the integrity of this people. I am not a pessimist either. While I
recognize the storms that are raging against our standards, I am as
sure as that I live that the promises of the Lord will be fulfilled, and
that this work shall not fail, nor shall it be given to another people.
I recognize however, with my brethren, that the sorest trials that have
ever come to the Church in any age of the world are the trials of peace
and prosperity. But we are to do a new thing, a thing that never has
before been done — -We are to take the Church of Christ not only
through the age of persecution and mob violence, but through the age
of peace and prosperity. For we must learn to endure faithfully even
in peace and prosperity.

|I am not praying for the return of persecution and poverty ; I am
praying for peace and prosperity ; but above all things for strength
and power to endure this test. For it was not the design and the
intention of the Lord to have this people always in suffering in bondage
and distress. They shall come to peace and prosperity, but it is the
sorest trial that will come to them.

SNARES OF THE EVIL ONE

I recognize that there are some things connected with this subject
that need to be brought to the attention of parents and of the watchmen
presiding in the various stakes, wards and missions of the Church,
watchmen who ought to distinguish, and they do I am sure, the presence
of evil, and set up a defense for the people of the Church, particularly
the young people.

I believe that there is need for greater care over our young people
during the period of their courtship. I have been grateful for ail the
blessings and joys of the automobile, but with it has come also dangers.
Thq courtship of too many goes forward in the automobile, and there
lurks a danger to many, because, unchaperoned and out of reach of
parents, away from all restraint, they seem to think they are alone.
But they are not, for the devil is often there to lay snares for their feet,

ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD

to destroy their own happiness and to darken their spirits by leading
them to sin and transgression.

During the war I saw the breaking down of what seemed to me to
be the most precious thing that the girls and women of this nation
have, maidenly modesty, until now it has come to be a sort of custom
among many young people (I regret to say even among us), that they
feel at liberty to promiscuously engage in embracing and kissing each
other when there is no thought of anything serious so far as engage-
ment or marriage is concerned — only the thrill they get. I protest
against it and say to you that there is danger in it, and that the fire
will burn those who play with it.

The sacredness of the kiss and affectionate relationships belong
only' to the engaged and married state, and ought not to be indulged
in by those_who are only seeking the thrill of the moment. There will
come danger if we do not guard and keep, by all the strength and power
we have, these splendid young people in the path of rectitude and safety.

A PECULIAR PEOPLE

I believe that virtue is its own reward. We arq to be a peculiar
people. I do not think the Lord meant we were to be freaks or in any
sense ugly or undesirable; but our peculiarities shall consist in that
we are different from other people in some of these most desirable
things. I remember, while on my first mission more than thirty years
ago, meeting a gentleman who could not believe that these Mormon
missionaries were clean and undefiled. He said, "You do not mean to
tell me that married men will go upon a mission and stay for two
years and keep themselves morally clean." I said: "I certainly do.
That is our standard." "Well," he said, "You won't find it anywhere
else."

THE SINGLE STANDARD

I feel sure that this is true. Our standard that requires a young
man to be as clean and as chaste and as pure as the girl he asks to be
his wife, the mother of his children, is peculiar. We do not find it
generally in the world. When I think of the assaults that are coming
I recognize the weakness of the world's position because of its double
standard. It required a higher standard of women than of men, and
now it has given to women equal rights with men, not only in the
franchise, but in other things. Some women are coming to ask the
same privilege to sow their wild oats that men have, and then expect
honorable marriage.

We have no such double standard. We ought to be able to succeed
under these circumstances better than others, because we have a single
standard for men and for women. We expect our boys to be as good as
our girls, and as clean. The Master said, in answer to the question, Who
is guilty of committing adultery ? that whosoever looked upon a woman
to hist after her had committed adultery already with her in his heart;

GENERAL CONFERENCE

and the Prophet Joseph Smith said that unless such a one repents he
will lose the Spirit. It is the quickest way to lose the Spirit.

PROTECTION THROUGH MODESTY

There never has been a day perhaps since these words were uttered
by the Master when there was greater temptation for men to think evil
than in this age with its immodesty, in almost every avenue of life. I am
not crying for reform in dress, but I do plead with the mothers of
Zion to undertake modesty in dress. We may like to follow the
fashion, but let us follow it in modesty. The most precious thing that
a girl has is her modesty and, if she preserves this in dress, in speech,
in action, it will arm, and protect her as nothing else will. But let her
lose her modesty, and she becomes a victim of those who pursue her,
as the hare ist of the hound; and she will not be able to stand unless
she preserves her modesty.

PATTERN MAKERS FOR THE WORLD

\I am therefore of the opinion that there is no peril that is threaten-
ing us today such as this peril of immoralty. It is in the world. The
standards that have long been maintained are being questioned and by
many discarded. Are we also to succumb? No. If that day comes,
and it will, when the people from the ends of the earth will say, "Come,
let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of
Jacob," it will be to learn of the ways of this people. If we act and live
like the world, why need they come here? They are to find something
different here. It is easy for us to drift with the tide. It doesn't
take much courage to do that, but it is difficult to go against the current.
God has called upon this people to be pattern-makers for the whole
world, to hold up an ensign that shall attract the attention of the ends
of the earth. Is it not worth fighting for to be admired and respected
by all the good and the great? This is the battle that is before us, to
preserve our standards.

MARRIAGE FOR A HOLY AND SACRED PURPOSE

Then when we come to the question of marriage, our standards
invite young men and women to live worthy to enter into the holy
contract of matrimony for time and for all eternity ; and that involves
upon them another sacred obligation, which is to fulfil the first great
commandment of God, "multiply and replenish the earth." Not com-
panionate marriage, no, but marriage with a given and definite pur-
pose. I plead with you parents and teachers in Zion to hold up the
ideal and the standard before our young people that they enter
marriage for a holy and sacred purpose. Not that they are to use these
glorious bodies with their God-given power of procreation as mere
harps of pleasure. If they do they shall reap disgust for each other
and stand condemned before God.

1 do not know of course what we agreed to before we came into
this life, but I have a deep conviction that we promised our Father's
children who long had been waiting for the privilege and opportunity

ELDER MELVIN J. BALLARD

to come into mortal life that we would remember them when we came
into life ourselves. If we wilfully and deliberately neglect that promise
and forget them and determinedly live a childless life, we shall stand
condemned in the presence of those to whom we have made sacred
promises and before God himself.

POVERTY NOT A BAN

Are poverty and the expense of raising children to be a ban that
shall deter us from maintaining the high standards of our fathers and
mothers? No. Poverty never was a ban against children rising to
eminence. Lincoln was not held back from the highest office within
the gift of the people because he was born of poor parents in a log
house. Nor need it be in this age of liberty, education and great oppor-
tunity for even the poor. Let us not be afraid to assume the full
obligations and receive the blessings that God has promised to those
who keep this first great commandment.

As far as the nations of the earth are concerned, I have made
some study of their statistics and they show that going hand in hand
with, a decreasing birth rate is an increasing divorce rate. The cement
that binds hearts together, children, is lacking, and as a result dis-
solution comes ; and as the family institution begins to crumble, so will
the government and the Church.

THE CRIME OF SEXUAL IMPURITY

I plead with you, therefore, my brethren and sisters, that we rally
to our standards. Certainly our teachers were right when they held
up an ideal that virtue was as sacred as life itself, and that we had
better lose our lives than lose our Adrtue. That was the teaching I
received ; and next to the crime of murder itself is the crime of sexual
impurity. The boy who would deliberately look upon a clean, chaste,
and pure girl to rob her of her virtue is almost as guilty as though he
contemplated sending a knife into her heart to destroy her; for when
she loses her virtue she loses that which is more precious than life
itself, ilf she does lose her virtue the devil is apt to deceive her, for
he often does, and make her believe, and a young man also, that now
he or she has committed this sin they are lost forever. Repentance is
in order always, and mercy for the sinner.

THE WAGES OF SIN

I was saying to a young woman who was confessing her own sins
recently, wondering if there were any hope for her, that if she con-
tinued the sale of her glorious body for the filthy lucre of this world she
soon would come to the end of her career, and, like an o'ld worn-out
shoe, be cast aside, and die prematurely, full of disease, in some
charitable institution.

REWARD OF THE VIRTUOUS

When you contrast that condition with the glorious privilege God

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has offered to the sons and daughters of Zion who keep themselves clean
and pure and undefiled, to go into the temples of God to receive a com-
panion for time and eternity, that they may be worthy to pass on.
by the angels and the Gods, to their glory and inheritance and attain unto
the power of endless increase, is it not inducement enough to call for
sacrifices, for cleanliness of life, for purity, so that we may reap these
glorious blessings and holy privileges?

A WORTHY EXAMPLE

'I believe that the strength and the power is in every boy to be as
good as was Joseph our forefather who was sold into Egypt. From the
time of my childhood the story of his life has appealed to me. When
he, comely and desirable, was sought after by the wife of the ruler,
he resisted her again and again ; and when she seized upon him he fled
from her presence, though he left part of his clothing in her possession.
Condemned falsely, he still stood true to his convictions, and God
vindicated him.

Let the young men of Israel, the descendants of this Joseph, look
upon their ancestor and be inspired to die rather than to be defiled,
that they may be worthy to come into the great heritage that God has
for his faithful sons and daughters. For if this generation shall keep
themselves clean and undefiled they shall reap honors and distinction
like unto which their fathers who subdued the deserts and made it
blossom never attained. We shall indeed be peculiar.

REQUIREMENTS TO WEATHER THE STORM

I have confidence and a faith that the great majority of this people
shall weather the storm, but it will require the closing in of our ranks.
It will require closer co-operation between parents and children. It
will require every effort and every power that this people can put forth
to preserve this generation in purity. God give us the strength and
the power to do it, that we may receive the great distinction and bless-
ing and the eternal joy that shall come as a result of achievement and
accomplishment, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen,

ELDER REY L. PRATT

Of the First Council of Seventy and President of the Mexican Missioit

I have been verv greatly impressed, my brethren and sisters, by the
spirit of the conference so far, and I feel strengthened and built up in
my faith by reason of the instructions and admonitions and the testi-
monies that have been given. I am thankful to my Heavenly Father
that I am accounted worthy of membership in the Church ; that I have
been accounted worthy to labor in the vineyard of the Lord. My mis-
sionary labors have been a source of very great joy to me, and they
continue to be so.

I rejoice in the opportunity of laboring with the noble young men
and women who are called from out the ranks of the Church and who

ELDER REV L. PRATT

are now and have been for the past years laboring with me in the
mission field. They grow and develop in a degree that is marvelous, in
their contact with the world, in their contact with opposition, and even
in their contact with the indifference that they encounter in the world.
I think someone said yesterday that they are born seemingly with a
testimony, and as soon as they begin to labor and to study and to reflect,
this testimony springs into real life and activity and they grow and
develop in a wonderful way. Their spirit of obedience is very re-
markable, my brethren and sisters. Those who have labored with me,
in nearly every instance have not hesitated at all to go where they
were directed to go, or to stay whatever length of time they were asked
to stay. If we had no difficulty about elders going home other than that
which we have from the elders in the field our difficulties would bo few
indeed. We do, I am sorry to say, have some little difficulty in keeping
our very fine missionaries in the field, because of the attitude assumed
by friends and relatives, and in some instances presiding officers, at
home. I wish that it could be understood by the people of the Church
generally, as we mission presidents understand it, and we have our
understanding from the General Authorities of the Church, that a
mission in the world is not for any stipulated length of time. Some
may be honorablv released at a year's expiration, and others may stay
well beyond the two year mark, even in some instances running into
three and five years in some missions. It would make it very much
easier for your missionary boys and girls if you could maintain them
there as long as the Lord requires them to remain ; and that duration
of time shall be indicated through the servants of the Lord whom he
has entrusted to preside over your young men and young women in the
missionary field.

In our particular field of labor the work is progressing very satis-
factorily, considering conditions and all concerned, even more satisfac-
torily than one could well hope for. We are thankful to the Lord for
this and feel a desire to continue our labors and to work zealously for
the redemption of that particular branch of the house of Israel with
which we are laboring, namely, the Lamanite people, who are descend-
ants of Joseph and who have resided upon this land of America.

I have been particularly impressed during this conference by the
reference that has been made to the Book of Mormon. It has made
my heart rejoice to hear the strong testimonies given in favor of its
divine authenticity, and it is a source of joy to know that the men of
science, archaeologists, who are delving into the ruins of the past, are
developing only things that corroborate the divine authenticity of the
Book of Mormon ; for in very deed all that is coming forth is in favor
of it. So far as my studies and observations are concerned I have
found nothing that in any way controverts the claim that we make for
tne divinity of the Book of Mormon.

It has been my good pleasure, my brethren and sisters, to travel a
very great deal in Book of Mormon lands, and it would have been
strange indeed if I had not taken some interest and had I not found some

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things that to me are evidences of the divine authenticity of that book. I
have not been among those who have tried to place or locate certain
cities, or even definitely certain lands; but I have read in the Book
of Mormon of a mighty civilization that has existed upon this con-
tinent in the remote past — the Jaredite civilization, preceding even the
Nephite civilization. I have read in the Book of Mormon of their
spreading out upon the face of the whole land. I have read about the
wonderful buildings they have left, the wonderful temples that they
have erected, the extent of their great cities. !l have studied about the
materials used in the construction of those cities; and it has been my
happy pleasure, my brethren and sisters, to see verily demonstrated be-
fore me the fact that there has lived in the remote past upon this con-
tinent a civilization that exceeded inj every way that found even by the
Spanish conquerors in Mexico and by the Spanish conquerors in Peru,
who conquered the most highly civilized nations found here by European
conquerors.

I have stood in amazement at the immense dimensions of the stones
used in the construction of great buildings in Mexico. I have seen
jutted together as lintels over three great doorways that led into a great
hall from a courtyard, stones that were five by six by twenty-five feet
in dimension. Brother Ballard and I, in returning from our missionary
sojourn in Buenos Aires, came by the great ruined city of Tiahuanaco.
at the extreme southern end of Lake Titicaca, at the great elevation of
12,500 feet above the sea level; where we actually measured stones that
were six by eight by twenty-five feet, and they were fitted together in
buildings, without mortar, in a system of dry masonry. So well
fitted and adjusted were some of these huge stones, that even after all
the ages that have passed since they were placed there, you cannot insert
a knife blade between the joints.

I have seen many things that demonstrate to> me that the Book of
Mormon is true. It is not a difficult thing for me to believe in inscriptions
on plates of gold. When Brother Ballard and I were returning from
.South America we had the opportunity of going ashore at Lima, Peru,
the capital of the Peruvian government. There we had access to a
national museum where a great collection had been made, which was
being housed in new quarters that were not open to the public. We
secured entrance, through the good offices of our ambassador to that
country, and after witnessing many archaeological wonders we came to
a glass case that was perfectly filled with gold ornaments. There were
cups and candlesticks seemingly, of very curious workmanship. They
were wonderful indeed. They were a few of the great things that had
been left after the cupidity of the Spanish conquerors had robbed that
country of all the gold that could be found, but yet some was left behind.
After examining through the glass case many of the objects, our at-
tention was attracted to a pile of gold leaf in one corner. As: near as
I could calculate its dimensions, it was about the same size as our
Juvenile Instructor, and the pile was about as high as half a dozen
Juveniles. The thickness of the leaves, it seemed to me, was similar to

ELDER REY L. PRATT 73

the outside cover of that magazine. They were of pure gold leaf.
All you would need to do would be to insert a ring through the edges
of them to have a set of plates that would contain at least as much as
we have in the abridgment of the Book of Mormon that was brought
to us through the instrumentality of the Prophet Joseph Smith.

■I do not say these things to be sensational or to boast, but I tell
you that my eyes have beheld them. I do not doubt the story of the
Book of Mormon because of these things. I have delved a very great
deal into old Spanish literature during the great number of years I
have resided in Latin American countries, and I have been able to search
out many curious traditions concerning the belief of the ancient people,
as they were recorded by the early chroniclers that came with the con-
quest of Mexico ; things that bespeak the fact that the people must have
had a knowledge of the creation and of the flood that was in every par-
ticular coincident with or exactly like the account given in the Bible.
The story of the creation is not recited very much in detail in the Book
of Mormon, but one cannot but understand from that record that the
people had a knowledge of it precisely as the Jews had it, because of the
fact that the Nephites brought with them the first five books of Moses,
upon which plates perhaps, as they were spoken of this morning by
Elder Talmage, were contained these writings. They had this record
precisely as it is in the Bible.

I have in my possession some pamphlets from which I have made
a few extracts that I should like to refer to. One is in regard to the
flood. These pamphlets are in Spanish, and I have made a hasty
translation of them into English, but I would like to call them to your
attention.

You remember that it is recorded in Genesis that the Lord com-
manded that the waters from above be separated from the waters be-
neath, and the account goes on to tell how they were arranged in their
proper places. There is a tradition that was recorded by Padre Pedro
de los Rios (Codice Rios (Vaticano A.), folio 12, anverso) speaking
of Quetzalcoatl, a great being traditional among them, to whom they
attributed the creation of the world and many other things. And this is
said about him by Padre Rios as he recorded the tradition that he found
among the Indians :

"This is the image of the first Lord that the world had, who, when it
pleased him, breathed and separated the waters of the heavens from those of
the earth, the which had before been together, and he it is that arranged them
as they now are."

You will see a close analogy, my brethren and sisters, between this
tradition and the account given in Genesis, which account truly must
have been had among the people of this land, if it so be that the Book
of Mormon is true.

There is a tradition among these people concerning the destruction
of the world by the flood; and furthermore, they recount that in the
traditions of the native people there was an account of the destruction

GENERAL CONFERENCE

of the world at another time. This excited the curiosity of one Diego
Munoz Camargo. You will find this accoufit written in his History
of Tlaxcala, published in 1892, on pages 153 and 154. He says:

"There being a very great error among these natives, and very general
throughout this new Spain, because they said this world had had two
endings or two windings up, and that one had been by deluges and
tempestuous waters, and that the earth had been turned upside down, and
that those who had lived at that time had been giants, whose bones are
found in the broken places.

You will recall, my brethren and sisters, that the Genesis account
also states that there were giants living in those days. The tradition

says :

"And those who lived at that time were giants whose bones are now
found in the broken places."

"They also say that there had been another ending of the world, and that
it was caused by winds and hurricanes that were so great that everything in
the world was destroyed, even the trees and plants of the mountains; and that
the men of that time were taken up from the ground and were lost to sight.
And they hold as a certainty, furthermore, that there is to be another ending
of the world and it is to be by fire."

■If you will take the pains, my brethren and sisters, to look up
these references you will find that my statement in regard to this is true.
These things attract my attention very greatly, and there are innumer-
able things of this kind that could be recited that are just as wonderful
as these that I have mentioned.

I would like to recount just one more tradition, which is in regard to
the miraculous conception of Jesus Christ or Quetzalcoatl. Our account
of the conception and birth of Jesus Christ and that of the conception
and birth of Quetzalcoatl, who was their great Deity, are almost the
same. You will find this in the Codice Telleriano Remensis.

"Quetzalcoatl was born in Chiuenauiecatl, which is where the hand is —
He it is that was born of the virgin that is cailed Chimalman in the heavens.
This Quetzalcoatl is he of whom it is said, 'He made the world,' because they
say that this Tonacatecuhtli (the supreme God who resides in the most high
heaven) when it pleased him breathed and begot this Quetzalcoatl; and he,
(Quetzalcoatl), they say it was that made the first man."

This is very remarkable, my brethren and sisters, taken in con-
nection with the account given in the New Testament, of the conception
of Jesus Christ ; and if you will couple that also with the first chapter
of John, wherein it says that the Son of the Most High God, who was
with the Father from the very beginning, was the Creator of the earth,
and that by him and through him and of him all things that were made
were made, you will see that we have ample reason to accept, even
from these external evidences, the fact that the Book of Mormon
is the word of God.

Nov/ to me it is a reality. It is my faith and belief in this Book of
Mormon that has kept me going throughout all the dark years of my
missionary service in Mexico. For it seems that no more obstacles could

ELDER REY L. PRATT

be placed in the way of missionary progress than have been, because of
conditions that have reigned in that land. But the Book of Mormon
recounts to us that the people of the land, the descendants of those
who wrote these great prophecies of the Lord, are a covenant people
of the Lord and they are to be redeemed.

I want to read to you something that has given to me a great
deal of faith and hope, and if the book is true as we declare it to be,
these promises that have not yet had their fulfilment will most surely
be fulfilled in behalf of that people. I read to you now from the
thirtieth chapter of 'Second Nephi, beginning with the third verse:

"And now, I would prophesy somewhat more concerning the Jews and
the Gentiles. For after the book of which I have spoken shall come forth, and
be written unto the Gentiles, and sealed up again unto the Lord, there shall
be many who shall believe the words which are written; and they shall carry
them forth unto the remnant of our seed.

"And then shall the remnant of our seed know concerning us, how that
we came out from Jerusalem, and that they are descendants of the Jews.

"And the Gospel of Jesus Christ shall be declared among them; where-
fore, they shall be restored unto the knowledge of their fathers, and also
to the knowledge of Jesus Christ, which was had among their fathers.

"And then shall they rejoice; for they shall know that it is a blessing
unto them from the hand of God; and their scales of darkness shall begin
to fall from their eyes; and many generations shall not pass away among
them, save they shall be a white and delightsome people."

I believe that prediction. I am working earnestly, my brethren and
sisters, for its fulfilment. Tt would be almost easier, looking at the
thing from a natural standpoint, to believe in the extermination of the
people rather than that any of them would be spared. But they are
to enjoy this great redemption.

I would like to refer to statistics that reveal the fact that since the
coming of the Spanish conquerors among the Indian people, — at least
speaking of those south of the Rio Grande, clear on through Mexico
and down to Central and South America, — nine-tenths of them have
succumbed. That is in a period of about four hundred years. Mathe-
matically calculating" it would not take long for the other one-tenth
tq be wiped out, for it seems that the same condition of strife and war
and bloodshed prevails among them. Looking at it naturally it almost
looks as though not even a remnant of them might be left. But in
this respect, and in order that my faith may not falter, I take courage
from the word of the Lord as it came to Nephi concerning this very
thing; for verily he was shown just what would happen among this
people, that his own branch should be destroyed at the hands of their
brethren, and that his brethren should dwindle in darkness and un-
belief, and that there should be wars and strife among them for gen-
eration after generation. But the Lord said to him something that
must have been very consoling to him, and indeed, my. brethren and
sisters, it is very consoling to me. Speaking of the great Gentile nation
that should be brought in to bring them down and to inhabit the land,
the Lord maintains that it is the land of the inheritance of the sons and

GENERAL CONFERENCE

daughters and the descendants of Lehi, to whom he gave this land as a
perpetual inheritance. And in this connection the Lord says to Nephi
as recorded in the thirteenth chapter of first Nephi:

"Nevertheless, thou beholdest that the Gentiles who have gone forth out
of captivity, and have been lifted up by thq power of God above all other
nations, upon the face of the land which is choice above all other lands, which
is the land that the Lord hath covenanted with thy father that his seed
should have for the land of their inheritance; wherefore, thou seest that
the Lord God will not suffer that the Gentiles will utterly destroy the
mixture of thy seed, which are among thy brethren. Neither will he suffer
that the Gentiles shall destroy the seed of thy brethren."

So I take it, my brethren and sisters, that these prophecies and
promises are valid. The Lord intends to redeem that people. He
intends to redeem them through those of us who are brought out from
among the Gentile nations and who in very deed believe the words
of the book that has come to us. I testify to you with those who have
testified before me that it is the word of God. It has been revealed
through the instrumentality of the greatest prophet that has resided in
this world, save it be the Son of God himself ; and it will stand the
test of time. It will stand the test of any investigation that can be
brought to bear and in the end it will triumph. The Lord help us
to believe it and help us to act well our part in carrying out the work
assigned to us in this great work of the Lord, I humbly ask in the
name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

ELDER RICHARD R. LYMAN

An ancient prophecy, in the second chapter of Isaiah, contains,
in the first four verses, two notable predictions. In the fifth verse the
prophet makes this telling appeal to the people of Jacob: "O house
of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord." — Isaiah 2 :5.

WHAT PEOPLE DESIRE TO KNOW

I received a letter the other day from Evanston, Wyoming. The
writer said that in recent remarks in this tabernacle I indicated that
there are characteristic differences between the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints and other churches. My correspondent adds that
I failed to point out the differences. I attempted then to point out
that our missionary system is one of the characteristic features of our
Church work. I hope this afternoon briefly to indicate another out-
standing feature.

In the ninth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, it is said :

"And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the
disciples; of the Lord, went unto the High Priest.

"And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he
found any of this way"— that is, any who are disciples of the Lord, any of
the believers in the Gospel of Jesus Christ— "men or women, he might bring
them bound unto Jerusalem."

ELDER RICHARD R. LYMAN

THE LIGHT) AND THE VOICE

"And as he journeyed, he came near to Damascus: and suddenly there
shined round about him a light from heaven:

"And he fell to the earth and heard a voice."— Acts 9:1-4.

He saw a light and he heard a voice. Later, Paul the Apostle
appears before King Agrippa in his own defense: and, standing. before
this great king, he said, telling this same story:

"Whereupon, as I went to Damascus with authority and commission
from the chief priests,

"At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the
brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed,
with me.

"And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking
unto me." — Acts 26:13, 14.

Notice that he says : "I saw a light," "I heard a voice." It was a
vision.

EFFECTS OF THE VISION

We have seen that Isaiah says :

"O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord."
— Isaiah 2:5.

That light from heaven which shone into the life and soul of Saul
transformed him from a man who was persecuting the followers of the
meek and lowly Nazarene to one who thereafter gave them his most
loyal and ardent support. It changed him from a man of hate to a
a man of love. It is that spirit — something that comes into the human
heart — that we believe in these days results when one in authority, plac-
ing his hands upon those who are faithful and repentant, says to them,
"Receive ye the Holy Ghost."

Ours is a land of liberty and freedom, especially a land of re-
ligious freedom. Its motto, "In God we trust," might well have come
from that remarkable picture — that scene of which we all have read —
Jesus the Son of God, in the Garden of Gethsemane upon his knees.
That is the spirit which has characterized leading people of the United
States in the entire history of our nation.

THE SPIRIT OF AMERICA

Have you examined the special stamp issued in 1928 by the United
States government? In the left-hand corner is this inscription : "1778" ;
in the right-hand corner, "1928" — one hundred and fifty years later. Be-
tween these two dates are the words "Valley Forge"; and on the
stamp, the stamp of the United States government, officially made in
the year of our Lord 1928, is Washington, the father of his country,
upon his knees. The motto of our country, as it appears upon our
dollar, is : "In God We Trust." To this land of liberty— of religious
freedom— people came that they might worship God according to the
dictates of their own conscience. During the first critical period, they

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were led by George Washington, who frequently and effectively sought
divine aid.

THE WISDOM OF FRANKLIN

Standing in the Constitutional Convention, Benjamin Franklin said :

"Mr. President, I perceive that we are not in condition to pursue this
business any further. Our blood is too hot. We indeed seem to feel our
own want of political wisdom, since we have been running about in search of
it. We have gone back to ancient history for models of governments and
examined the different forms of those republics which, having been formed
with the seeds of their own dissolution, now no' longer exist. In this situation
of this assembly, groping as it were in the dark, to find political truth, and
scarce able to distinguish it when presented to us, how has it happened, sir,
that we have not hitherto once thought of humbly applying to the Father of
light to illuminate our understandings? In the beginning of the contest
with Great Britain, when we were sensible to danger, we had daily prayer
in this room for divine protection. Our prayers, sir, were heard; and they
were graciously answered.

"To that kind Providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting,
in peace, on the means of establishing our future national felicity; and have
we now forgotten that powerful Friend? Or do we imagine that we no
longer need his assistance? I have lived, sir, a long time; and the longer
I live the more convincing proofs I see of this truth, that God governs in
the affairs of men."

THE FAITH OF LINCOLN

No less a man than Abraham Lincoln, foremost and most typical
of Americans, was wont to retire into his office, and there, behind a
locked door, to appeal to divine providence for help and guidance.
While the fearful Civil War was raging, Lincoln issued a proclamation
setting apart the 30th day of April, 1863, as a day of fasting and prayer.
In this choice land, "choice above all other lands" (II Nephi 1:5), he
appealed to the people to go into their various places of worship, to
assemble around their own hearthstones, and to appeal to the Most
High for divine direction :

"Whereas it is the duty of nations as well as of men to own their de-
pendence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and trans-
gressions in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance
will lead to mercy and pardon, and to recognize the sublime truth, announced
in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations only are
blessed whose God is the Lord;

"And, insomuch as we know that by his divine law nations, like indi-
viduals, are subjected to punishments and chastisements in this world, may
we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war which now desolates
the land may be but a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous
sins, to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people? We
have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have been
preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in
numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we
have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved
us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have
vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our own hearts, that all these blessings
were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated
with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity

ELDER RICHARD R. LYMAN

of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that
made us.

"It behooves us, then, to humble ourselves before the offended Power,
to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.

"Now, therefore, in compliance with the request,! and fully concurring in
the views, of the Senate, I do by this my proclamation designate and set apart
Thursday, the 30th day of April, 1863, as a day of national fasting and prayer.
And I do hereby request all the people to abstain on that day from their
ordinary secular pursuits, and to unite at their several places of public wor-
ship and their respective homes in keeping the day holy to the Lord and
devoted to the humble discharge of the religious duties proper to that
solemn occasion.

"All this being done in sincerity and truth, let us then rest humbly in
the hope authorized by the divine teachings that the united cry of the nation
will be heard on high and answered with blessings no less than the pardon
of our national sins and the restoration of our now divided and suffering
country to its former happy condition of unity and. peace."

THE POWERS OF HEAVEN

The spirit of America, the spirit of Lincoln, is most distinctively
that spirit which appeals to the powers of heaven.

Considering now a time more recent, have you not all read the
words written during the last sixty days by Calvin Coolidge, until
recently President of the United States? He, an American with the
American spirit, tells us just what he did when he learned officially of
the death of President Harding. The word came to him in the night.
He says : "I arose and put on my clothing" — and then, to quote his
exact words — "before leaving that room I knelt down * * * and
asked God to bless the American people, and to give me power to serve
them." That act illustrates anew the spirit of our country.

One month, and two days ago today, in the city of Washington, I
had the genuine pleasure of listening to the inaugural address of Pres-
ident Hoover. His closing words were: "I ask the help of Almighty
God in the service of my country." Do we not find in these words the
spirit of America? That spirit is found not only in words that were
uttered long ago ; for these words express the actual spirit of America
today. Our land has been made sacred by the prayers of its people.

ANOTHER MODERN INSTANCE

Can anyone be surprised, therefore, that a hundred years ago, a boy
fourteen years old, no more, seriously religious, and given to reading
the scriptures, was led, like these leaders, by the same American spirit?
For when he came to the words of Scripture (James 1 :5), "If any of
you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, * * * and it shall be given
him," he followed this advice and sought his Heavenly Father in prayer.

How appropriate it was that in this religious country, following
the example of its great men, he should go straightway into the sacred
grove and there make his appeal to the Most High.

VISIONS OF LONG AGO

Saul of Tarsus, afterwards Paul the Apostle, saw a light, heard a

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voice, beheld a vision. Since visions and revelations were possible
then, are they not possible now? To those who accept this book called
the Bible, to those who believe its words concerning Paul, may I not
ask again : Since it was possible for him to hear a voice, to see a
light, was it not possible for this boy, believing and hoping, also to
see a light, to hear a voice, to receive a vision ? We hold that as a
result of this boy's visions, the inspiring prophecies I quoted at the be-
ginning are now being fulfilled.

Consider another Scripture : John the divine heard a voice that
said : "Come up hither, and I will show thee things which must be
hereafter." — -Rev. 4:1.

This is a strong statement: Not things that may be; not things
that will probably be; but "things which must be hereafter."
John adds this declaration :

"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the ever-
lasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every
nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people." — Rev. 14:6.

We hold that the fulfilment of that prophecy came as the result
of an appeal made by a boy with faith believing, as he knelt in the
sacred grove. John the Revelator, with inspired insight had the vision,
and drew the picture ; and the angel he beheld has flown through the
midst of heaven, bringing the everlasting Gospel to be preached to all
people.

IN THE TOPS OF THE MOUNTAINS

We have seen that Paul saw a light, heard a voice. Joseph Smith
saw a light and heard a voice ; and as a result of his vision these
prophecies have been and are being fulfilled.

Let us now return to the two quotations referred to in the begin-
ning: "And it shall come to pass in the last days" — I draw attention
to "the last days" — "that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be
established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the
hills ; and all nations shall flow unto it." — Isaiah 2 :2.

Over the radio or otherwise, you who desire to know something
that is peculiar to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, may
take this as one of the characteristic things : The mountain of the Lord's
house is established in the top of the mountains. It is here, exalted
above the hills. Unto it all nations have already come. If I were
to call the names of all the nations this afternoon and were to ask
those to stand who have descended from people of these various nations.
I believe there would be a demonstration that this outstanding prophecy
has been and is being fulfilled.

THE PRESENT SPIRIT OF PEACE

That is the first part. Consider now the second :

"And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people:
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into

ELDER RICHARD R. LYMAN

pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall
they learn war any more." — Isaiah 2:3, 4.

That also is a prophecy now being fulfilled. Then come the words
already referred to : "O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in
the light of the Lord."

Our papers, our literature, our magazines, have been filled during
recent years with articles that endeavor to point out the way to peace.
Peace is in practically every issue. In the Deseret Nezvs last night I
noticed an article, asking whether or not the entrance of the United
States into the World Court will be given consideration in the coming
special session of Congress. The League of Nations — see what it is
accomplishing. Statesmen, scholars, educators, men of money, in every
country are struggling to bring peace to the world. Clearly in ful-
filment of this prophecy are the following : the Locarno pact, a marvel-
ous step forward in the interest of peace; the effort put forth by the
United States in the virile words, "The outlawing of war," in the
Briand-Kellogg peace pact, made for the express purpose of renouncing
war ; the United States going into the World Court. The article that
I read last night indicates that the President of the United States, while
he has publicly expressed no definite opinion, has such an intense in-
terest in the World Court that the new formula prepared by Elihu
Root and the jurists of the nations will, without doubt, be acceptable
to him.

"in the last days"

In all this we are not talking about the peace of one nation, nor of
a few, but of many nations — all the countries of the world, the jurists
of the nations, the wise men of our day. "In the last days, the mountain
of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains."

The Lord is to judge among the nations, and to rebuke many
people. They are to beat their swords into plowshares, their spears
into pruning-hooks. Nations are not to take up swords against nations
any more.

This is the place. This is the time. This is the Church. These
prophecies are being fulfilled. I say unto you, who have gathered in
the top of the mountains, where the mountain of the Lord's house is
exalted above the hills, let us, in the language of Isaiah, walk together
in the light of the Lord, that we may be united and walk in purity, love,
honesty, and truth; that all prophecies made concerning us may be
fulfilled.

ELDER LEVI EDGAR YOUNG

Of the First Council of Seventy

The sincere prayer in my heart this moment, my brethren and
sisters, is that I may be inspired and directed by the Spirit of the Lord
to say something to you that will comfort you if you mourn; to say
something that will encourage you if you are discouraged. "Thou shalt

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love the Lord thy God with all thy heart * * * and thy neighbor as
thyself." Tf each individual knows and feels this truth to be funda-
mental and lives it, much of our energy will be released to develop our
gifts and spiritual lives. We will be patient with our neighbor's faults
and excuse them as we do our own. We will help him ; we will be
kind to him ; we will be strictly honest in our dealings with him. We
will live a life that will be an example to him.

We have this afternoon some distinguished visitors from Denmark,
sitting in the congregation. We bid them welcome to these services.
They may recall that above the gate of the University of Denmark at
Copenhagen, there is a beautiful eagle with out-stretched wings. Under-
neath the eagle is a Latin inscription which in English reads : "The
eagle is looking toward the celestial light." A lovely and inspiring
thought for the youth of Denmark. So we too. my friends are looking
toward the celestial light; we are humbly striving with you toward
perfection.

My life's work has brought me into close contact with the youth;
with young men and young women in colleges and universities. They
wish to talk honestly about what life has meant so far, and what it
may mean. They are young, intelligent, cultured people ; but many of
them are taking no part in a spiritual development for themselves ;
nor are they helping others in this regard. They need awakening re-
ligiously. They need to De shown the way, the truth, and the life ;
and then be given an opportunity for intelligent expressional activitv.
They must be converted and filled with a spirit of influencing their
friends and companions and associates. Besides, these young people
write to me from all nations and tongues for help and information and
spiritual guidance.

I meet on this Temple Block mission the travelers, the tourists, the
students, the professional people, the humble individual who is out for
pleasure. All are eager to hear the message of Christ's Gospel — the
brotherly Christian religion. They all want to know the history, and
the religion of this people. Preachers and ministers of all Christian
sects hear us and invite us to come to their churches in their cities
and speak to their congregations. I have had invitations to speak in
many cities in the United States and in Europe, Japan, and India. The
people who come to us are impressed with our lives, our ideals, our re-
ligion : and they want it explained to their followers. They want us
to do for them what Paul did for Timothy, when he said:

"Wherefore, I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God,
which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.

"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love,
and of a sound mind.

"Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord; * * *
but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power
of God;

"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according
to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given
us in Jesus Christ before the world began."

ELDER LEVI EDGAR YOUNG

We are able to speak plainly with the people of the world. We must
proclaim religion as a way of life, rather than a set of ethical mandates.
As Latter-day Saints, we are not left in doubt concerning the things
that really spell value and that endure. Unfortunately, in the religious
controversies of the day, secondary issues have been exalted above pri-
mary truths. The Gospel of Jesus Christ has primary truths that
must forever and ever regulate human souls unto divine guidance.
We cannot very well mistake religion so long as it upbuilds and makes
the Christian man. "Righteousness anywhere and everywhere is the
paramount sovereign and effectual witness of Christian souls." So on
this Temple Block where thousands of people come to visit us, we try
to show with love for God and his children that the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints upholds the witness that God lives, that
Jesus is the Christ, and that the priesthood of God has been restored
in this day. This cannot help being the inextinguishable light to all
nations and people.

As missionaries, we proclaim religion as a way of life, rather than
a set of ethical mandates. As Latter-day Saints we are not left in doubt
concerning the things that really spell value and endure. Unfortunately,
in the religious controversies of today, secondary issues have been
exalted above primary truths. The Gospel of Jesus Christ has primary
truths that must forever regulate souls unto divine guidance. We
cannot very well mistake religion so long as it upbuilds and makes the
Christian man. The Church of Jesus Christ upholds the witness that
God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, and that the priesthood of God
has been restored in this day. This cannot help being an inextinguish-
able light to all nations and ages.

I think we should proclaim more and more the standard Church
works which are the Holy Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and
Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. In them do we find the prin-
ciples of eternal life ; and the holy commandments that teach us to love
God, and our neighbors as ourselves. "Love your enemies, * * *
do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully
use you." In these books do we have the superb procession of idealists
which the world needs today. As Latter-day Saints, we should know
and keep ever in mind the teachings of the Savior of mankind, and let
Jesus Christ be our Guide and our Light. We all realize that life is
a struggle, and is filled with so many hardships and pains ; so many
sorrows and trials. So the supreme power in all this struggle is
prayer — the turning to God through Jesus Christ, and adding the force
of the eternal to the petty cares of life.

We may well turn to our sacred books from now on more and more,
and receive the teachings that they hold for us, for in them do we find
eternal life. A word now about our holy books.

The Holy Bible contains the richest and most enlightened thought
concerning man and God that has ever been written. The work taken
as a whole teaches the fatherhood of God and the great plan of salva-
tion for the human race. God is the Creator of the world and all things

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therein, and has established through revelation a bond of divine rela-
tionship with his children.

Great prophets like Moses, Isaiah, Hosea, Micah, Jeremiah, and
Ezekiel sought to raise the spiritual life of the times in which they
lived. They inspired the people of their countries to believe in God,
and to hope for a Redeemer of the world.

The Bible tells of people who became acquainted with each other
through international commerce and trade with foreign civilization. It
tells about the industrial and civic life of peoples of ancient days,
and how they kept alive a monotheism, and morality based on belief
in God. They had the highest possible idea of God, who gave to his
servants the highest knowledge of moral and religious laws. The New
Testament comprises the writings of the Apostles and disciples of Jesus
Christ our Lord. These divinely inspired men taught the Kingdom
of God and its coming: the Fatherhood of God and the infinite value
of the human soul and the higher righteousness and the law of love.
These are all to be obtained by obeying the laws and commandments of
God, which are fundamentally, faith in God the eternal Father, and in
his Son Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost; the principles of repent-
ance and holy baptism by immersion by one having divine authority ;
and the conferring of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands by one
holding the priesthood of God. The Bible teaches the sanctity of the
Church, because only through the incorporation of religion with the
Church does religion gain a full actuality for man. The Bible is the
first of the standard works of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
day Saints.

The Book of Mormon teaches that the same Semitic institutions
which the forefathers of the American Indians had in their native
country in Asia were brought to America, and under new environment
and conditions, were developed in this land. Like the Bible, the Book
of Mormon makes God and immortality subjects of faith ; and public
and private righteousness matters of practice. It identifies God with
the principle of morality, and goes farther by identifying God with the
story of human progress and life, in, which mankind is redeemed from
evil. It teaches the deeper consciousness between the Almighty and the
individual soul, and unfolds the divine purpose in the rise, fall, and
progress of nations.

The Book of Mormon tells how the ancient peoples of America
built cities and developed a rich religious and political life, and in time
how Jesus the Christ gave his teachings to the people, just as his
message of salvation was given to the Jews, Greeks, and Romans. The
Church of 'Christ was established on this continent, and his holy priest-
hood given to those who were chosen for his work. Prophets wrote
the history of the people, and their most important message is that
God is the Father and Creator of the world and mankind.

The religious teaching of the Book of Mormon is monotheistic,
and embodies the revelations of God to his people on this the American
continent. Likeness to God is its supreme aim, and the highest duty

ELDER LEVJ EDGAR YOUNG

of man is, "Ye shall be perfect, even as your Heavenly Father is
perfect."

The Pearl of Great Price embodies the visions of Moses as re-
vealed to Joseph Smith the Prophet in 1830. It also comprises the Book
of Abraham which is a translation of some ancient records from the
catacombs of Egypt, to which are added the writings of Joseph Smith
concerning his first vision and revelation, and his baptism and ordina-
tion. The principal part of the Book of Moses treats of the work
of God in the creation of the world and of man. God is the Creator
of the Universe and the Father of the race, and in God's image man
is created.

The teachings of the Pearl of Great Price are in complete harmony
with the Holy Bible. Man has fallen below his higher self and the divine
principle of the moral law has been lost. There is the same pure
monotheism, the same personal conception and moral character of
God ; and his command to his children to recognize the supremacy of
the law of salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord. It shows the
importance of the lofty conception of one living God, who reveals
himself to man and enters into gracious relation with him as God and
Father.

The Pearl of Great Price gives the true idea of the nature of
God. It shows how God became an intense reality in the minds of the
ancient Hebrews ; and the sublime central thought of the book is that
man does not search after God alone, but God draws graciously near
to man and manifests himself in person and by his holy influence.

The Doctrine and Covenants contains the revelations of God the
Father to Joseph Smith and other prophets of God in this dispensation.
It was first published in 1835. It tells about the restoration of the
plan of God in the salvation of the human race. It is largely ethical
in its message, and, like the Book of Mormon, makes public and private
righteousness matters of practice. The book opens by telling of a
mighty work that is about to be ushered into the world. This is the
restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, with the giving to man of the
holy priesthood of God, the Aaronic and1 Melchizedek, as it existed in
the days of the prophets of Israel and at the time of Christ. The out-
standing truth of the book is that God is identified as the Father of
the race, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ is restored in this day with all
its gifts and blessings. It puts the1 principle of righteousness through
obedience to the plan of salvation into the foreground ; and all its teach-
ings grow out of the principle that for man to attain the highest de-
velopment he must place his faith in God the eternal Father, and in his
Son Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost, and receive by divine authority
the priesthood of God. It also emphasizes the importance of man's
spiritual life, and his great mission on earth; as well as the glory of
immortality and the power of eternal progression in the hereafter.

May we go on with life more unafraid, and come to a realization
of our best selves. I pray God's blessing upon us all. Amen.

86 GENERAL CONFERENCE

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

Presented the General Authorities and Officers, and General Aux-
iliary Officers, who were voted upon and unanimously sustained as
follows :

GENERAL AUTHORITIES OF THE CHURCH

FIRST PRESIDENCY

lleber T. Grant, Prophet, Seer and Kevelator and President of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Anthony W. Ivins, First Counselor in the First Presidency.
Charles W. Nihley, Second Counselor in the First Presidency.

PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL OF THE TWELVE APOSTLES

Rudger Clawson

COUNCIL OF THE TWELVE APOSTLES

Rudger Clawson Joseph Fielding Smith

Reed Smoot James E. Talmage

George Albert Smith Stephen L. Richards

George F. Richards Richard R. Lyman

Orson F. Whitney Melvin J. Ballard

David O. McKay John A.* Widtsoe

PRESIDING PATRIARCH

Hyrum G. Smith

The Counselors in the First Presidency, the Twelve Apostles, and
the Presiding Patriarch as Prophets, Seers, and Revelators.

FIRST COUNCIL OF SEVENTY

Brigham H. Roberts
Jonathan G. Kimball j Charles H. Hart

Kulon S. Wells Levi Edgar Young

Joseph W. McMurrin Rev L. Pratt

PRESIDING BISHOPRIC

Sylvester Q. Cannon, Presiding Bishop
David A. Smith, First Counselor
John Wells, Second Counselor

TR USTEE-I N-TRUST

Heber J. Grant as Trustee-in-Trust for the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints.

GENERAL OFFICERS OF THE CHURCH

CHURCH HISTORIAN AND RECORDER

Joseph Fielding Smith, with the following assistants: Andrew
Jenson. Brigham H. Roberts, A William Lund, Junius F. Wells.

GENERAL OFFICERS OF THE CHURCH

CHURCH BOARD OF EDUCATION

Heber J. Grant Joseph Fielding Smith

Anthony W. Ivins David O. McKay

Charles W. Nibley Stephen L. Richards

Willard Young Richard R. Lyman

Rudger Clawson John A. Widtsoe

Orson F. Whitney Adam S. Bennion
Joseph F. Merrill

Arthur Winter, Secretary and Treasurer

COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION

Joseph F. Merrill

AUDITING COMMITTEE

Henry H. Rolapp Peter G. Johnston

Orval W. Adams

TABERNACLE CHOIR

Anthony C. Lund, Conductor B. Cecil Gates, Assist. Conductor

David A. Smith, President George C. Smith, Secretary

ORGANISTS

Edward P. Kimball Alexander Schreiner

Tracy Y. Cannon Frank W. Asper

CLERK OF GENERAL CONFERENCE

Joseph Anderson

GENERAL AUXILIARY OFFICERS OF THE CHURCH

NATIONAL WOMAN'S RELIEF SOCIETY

Louise Y. Robison, President
Amy Brown Lyman, First Counselor
Julia A. Child, Second Counselor
with all the members of the Board as at present constituted.

DESERET SUNDAY SCHOOL UNION

David O. McKay, General Superintendent
Stephen L. Richards, 1st Asst. Gen'l Supt.
George D. Pyper, 2nd Asst. Gen'l Supt.
with all the members of1 the Board as at present constituted.

YOUNG MEN'S MUTUAL IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION

George Albert Smith, General Superintendent
Richard R. Lyman, 1st Asst. Gen'l Superintendent
Melvin J. Ballard, 2nd Asst. Gen'l Superintendent
with all the members of the Board as at present constituted.

GENERAL CONFERENCE

YOUNG LADIES' MUTUAL IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION

Ruth May Fox, President
Lucy Grant Cannon, First Counselor
Clarissa Beesley, Second Counselor
with all the members of the Board as at present constituted.

PRIMARY ASSOCIATION

May Anderson, President
Sadie G. Pack, First Counselor
Isabelle S. Ross, Second Counselor
with all the members of the Board as at present constituted.

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

There are a number of returned mission presidents whom we would
have liked to hear, but time will not permit.

We wish to state that Brother Joseph Wilford Booth, who passed
away in Armenia, gave seventeen years of his life as a missionary in
that section of the country. No more faithful, God-fearing, humble,
splendid man have we had pass away in the mission field.

Sister Martha Home Tingey has given most splendid work as the
president of the Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Association for
many years, and as a counselor in the presidency while Sister Elmina
S. Taylor presided for many years previous to that time. She retires
with the love, the confidence and the blessing of the General Authorities
of the Church, and with the love and confidence of .all the members of
her General Board. All who favor extending to Sister Tingey a vote
of appreciation for her most splendid labors will manifest it. (The con-
gregation raised their right hands.)

I think the hands were raised higher for her than for any of the
rest of us.

The congregation sang, "Praise God from Whom all Blessings
Flow."

The dosing prayer was offered by Elder M. Ezra Sorensen, Pres-
ident of the Bannock Stake.

Conference adjourned until 10 o'clock Sunday morning.

THIRD DAY

MORNING MEETING

Conference reconvened Sunday morning-, April 7th, 1929, at 10
o'clock a. m., President Heber J. Grant presiding.

All the seats in the great Tabernacle were taken, and the aisles of
the building were crowded with people who stood during the services.
Many who were unable to get inside the Tabernacle listened to the
services as they were broadcast by radio in the Assembly Hall on the
Tabernacle grounds.

The choir and congregation sang the hymn, "Praise to the man who
communed with Jehovah."

President Cliffored E. Young of the Alpine Stake offered the
opening prayer.

The choir sang the anthem, "The Morning Breaks, the Shadows
Flee."

PRESIDENT CHARLES W. NIBLEY

My dear brethren and sisters, I approach this task in fear and
trembling. That is not a pleasantry or a figure of speech ; it is an actual
fact. I need your sympathy and faith, and the sustaining influence that
it gives.

THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH

We have had a great deal of excellent instruction during our con-
ference. The Spirit of the Lord has accompanied the teachings of the
elders, from the President of the Church throughout the whole list
of speakers. I have noticed that there has run through their teachings
this distinctive thought, that it is only by the Spirit of the Lord that
the Church can be built up. I would like to read from the Doctrine and
Covenants a few words in respect to that idea. In a revelation found in
Section 50, commencing at the 17th verse:

"Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me and sent forth to preach
the word of truth by the Comforter, in the Spirit of truth, doth he preach it
hy the Spirit of truth or some other way?

"And if it be by some other way it is not of God.

"And again, he that receiveth the word of truth, doth he receive it by the
Spirit of truth or some other way?

"If it be some other way it is not of God.

"Therefore, why is1 it that ye cannot understand and know, that he that
receiveth the word by the Spirit of truth receiveth it as it is preached by
the Spirit of truth?

"Wherefore, he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one
another, and both are edified and rejoice together.

"And that which doth not edify is not of God, and is darkness.

"That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and con-
tinueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter until
the perfect day."

GENERAL CONFERENCE

The Lord here makes it plain that, in bringing converts into the
Church, the teacher must have1 the Spirit of the Comforter, the Spirit
of truth, the light of truth. And the one that receives that testimony
must also partake of that same Spirit. Both then, are edified; both
are enlightened by the power of the Spirit of the Lord, the one that
teaches and the one that receives.

THE SPIRIT OF EVIL

Science has pretty nearly banished a belief in the devil from among
thinking people. Irreligious people of the world tell us "that was good
enough to frighten children with, a hundred years ago or five hundred
year ago ; but there is no such power or influence in the world, at
all." But they will not tell us, and it cannot be said, that evil does
not exist. The origin of evil has been discussed by thinkers of the
world for many hundreds of years ; but evil is still here, the spirit of
evil that which tempts us and leads us away from righteousness. That
is here, whether it be of the devil or not; call it devil or satan, or
just a general influence extant all over the world. The spirit of good
is here, too ; the spirit of righteousness is here ; it is existant over the
entire earth, and I suppose in the universe everywhere.

CONTENDING INFLUENCES

So these two contending influences are here. St. Paul said : "When
I would do good, evil is present with me." Have you not found it so?
You elders, and you sisters also, in governing in your homes — yOu
brethren in governing in your wards and stakes and missions, have you
not found the spirit of evil extant, the spirit of Satan that fights against
God ? He is not yet conquered ; he will be in time. We are told in the
revelation of St. John that when we pass on to an exalted state there
will be no death, no sorrow, no evil, because Satan will not have power
to tempt the saints of God any more but that day has not come yet.
That evil one is still wrestling with us. You find it every day. A man goes
to the bishop to settle his tithing. He figures it up himself ; he settles
it in his own mind. Have you ever felt the temptation, something
running through your mind like this : "Now, I gave so and so at such
and such a time; ought I not to take that out of my tithing?" If
you receive a call to go on a mission, have you note felt : "Well now,
I have been on a mission ; I have been working in the ward, I don't
feel that I can go on a mission now?" So, all through the activities of
life and the activities of the Church, that tempter abides more or
less with us, except as we banish him by the power of the living God,
the power of truth by which we receive the truth, that Spirit which I
have read to you, that Spirit which leads to life, which makes me say,
or you say, if we listen to it : "Why, of course, I will pay my full
tithing. Of course I will go on a mission if you brethren want me.
That is first all the time."

IF ONLY TO DECEIVE

In Los Angeles a week or two ago I counted* in a newspaper adver-

PRESIDENT CHARLES W. NIBLEY 91

tisement, thirteen different churches where there were meetings of spirit-
ualists ; people who believe that we are operated upon, in our affairs, by
these spiritualistic influences. We are told that they do have some kind
of communication with these unseen agencies very often. There have
been such manifestations for many years in the world, and many
notable people who believe in them. One of the most distinguished of
these, a great scientist, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, lectured on the subject
from this stand. We heard what he had to say, but he brought forth
nothing new. I don't know of a single new principle distinctive or of
value, I don't know of any truth that makes for the upbuilding and
strengthening and the betterment of mankind that has come from that
source. And yet those spirits or those influences may sometimes tell
us truths, if only to deceive us. Carlyle said of Shakespeare that his
intellect was the greatest that this world has yet been blessed with,
in any human being : and Shakespeare makes Banquo say regarding these
spirits, the witches that appeared to Macbeth: "But 'tis strange and
oftentimes to win us to our harm the instruments of darkness tell us
truths," — let me repeat that by way of emphasis — "the instruments
of darkness tell us truths, — win us with honest trifles to betray us in
deepest consequence."

In another scene of the same great play we are told that Mac-
beth listened to the voice of the evil one through these same witches
who led him on and on toward his ruin, until he saw how he was
being deceived, and then he uttered these words : "I pull in resolu-
tion and begin to doubt the equivocation of the fiend who lies like truth."

GRACE BEING ADDED TO GRACE

Not so with the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of righteousness,
the Spirit of this work of which I have read. It leads us the other
way. We receive the truth, and more than the truth as reasoned out by
man. We receive the light and truth of the Holy Spirit, of the Com-
forter, which leads to God. Yet have we not at times had some expe-
rience with these influences that are trying to draw us away from the
Lord, influences of such a character that they are lying like truth?
Against them we are constantly warned and must be constantly on guard.
They will deceive the very elect, if it is possible, if we listen to them.
But if we listen to the other power, then our salvation is sure and
certain. We become, as I have read to you, more and more in that
spirit which leads to God, grace being added to grace. In another sec-
tion, on the same subject, are these words:

"I give unto you these things that you may understand and know how
to worship, that you may come unto the Father, in my name, and in due
time receive of his fulness."

"For if you keep my commandments you shall receive of his fulness, and
be glorified in me as I am in the Father; therefore, I say unto you, you
shall receive grace for grace."

INTELLIGENCE LIGHT AND TRUTH

Then can we say truly : "I have received of that witness and testi-

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mony, that I know this is the work of God ;" and partake of that
same spirit which is spoken of a little further on in the same revelation :
"The glory of God is intelligence" — not merely intelligence as we under-
stand intelligence — but "in other words, light and truth." What kind of
light and truth? What kind of intelligence? Is it the intelligence which
men acquire and which we perhaps think is comprised in book learning,
or the intelligence which the natural man is capable of acquiring? No,
not at all. The glory of God is that intelligence which comprises light
and truth. What does this light and truth do for us ? "Light and truth
forsake that evil one." That is the kind of intelligence ; that is the
kind of light and truth that is meant — that which forsakes evil and
cleaves to good. And so the wayfaring man, the unlettered man, may
receive that Spirit of light and intelligence which pertains to the glory
of God, and be filled with it. Obeying all the commandments of God
he is more intelligent than those even though they may be learned, who
do not partake of that Spirit. A man with that intelligence can be taken
on and on until he receives a fulness of glory, and he becomes like
unto God.

IN NO OTHER WAY

Now, I want to say, in closing, that the presidency of this Church,
the Twelve Apostles, the Seventies, the leading brethren in the stakes
and wards and missions, can build up this Church only by the Spirit
about which I have read to you. In no other way can it be built up ;
assuredly not by the spirit of man. Churches may be established.
Lodges may be organized, many organizations formed for the help
and benefit of man — and many of them do much good too, and are
praiseworthy; but they have not this distinctive feature that this
Church has, which was revealed in the beginning and is emphasized,
iterated and reiterated all through the revelations, namely, that with-
out that Spirit of light and truth, that Spirt of the Lord, that Spirit
of the Comforter, that power of the Holy Ghost, his Church cannot be
built up. If it be attempted by any other way than the Lord speaks
of here in the passages which I have read, then it is not of God.
So, my brethren and isisters, let us take it to heart ; all of us who labor
for Zion must know and understand that we must keep that in-
fluence and that power which comes from God in our hearts, the
light of his Spirit burning in our souls. It is illustrated in what
Brother Harris said last night in the priesthood meeting, and what
we have often heard, respecting what President Young told Brother
Karl G. Maeser when he sent him to take charge of the Brigham
Young Academy at Provo. President Young said: "Brother Maeser,
I don't want you to try to teach even the multiplication table without
the Spirit and influence of the power of God."

You brethren, you sisters — sisters of the Relief Society, those at
the head1 of it, and the sisters of the Primary, and the Young Ladies
— you brethren in all the quorums of priesthood, let us get this into
our hearts, minds and souls, that we are charged with the responsi-

PRESIDENT CHARLES W. NIBLEY

bility to oversee some portion of the work of the Lord. Get this
into our hearts, that by the Spirit of the living God, and only by that
power and Spirit, can this work grow and prosper and be established.
That power and Spirit does not come from the wisdom of man. It
pertains to the glory of God, which is intelligence, the kind of in-
telligence which forsaketh that evil one. May we keep that, my
brethren and sisters, in our minds firmly; get it rooted in our hearts
and souls; and then work in humility, in faith, and he will increase
our power, by which means, as I have read to you, we will be helped
to go from grace to grace until we become filled with that Spirit to
the fulness of power and glory, filled with the Spirit of power which
forsakes that evil one to walk in the light of God's countenance, to
his glory and honor. By that influence and power, and by none other,
will this work prosper and his kingdom come.

The Lord bless us all, I pray, through Jesus Christ. Amen.

ELDER SYLVESTER Q. CANNON

Presiding Bishop of the Church

It is a cause of rejoicing to me, my brethren and sisters, to be
privileged to meet with you in this grand conference. The instructions
that have been given and the spirit and power that have been manifest
have been a source of great joy and satisfaction to me.

I am, very grateful for the fellowship of my brethren of the First
Presidency and the other General Authorities, and of "these brethren who
preside in the stakes and wards, and of all the members of this Church.
I rejoice in the faith and devotion of the Latter-day Saints, and the
spirit of love and kindliness which characterizes their lives and actions.

VITAL STATISTICS KNOWN ABROAD

In President Grant's opening discourse he cited some vital statistics
of the Latter-day Saints. In listening to them I was reminded of the
fact that these statistics, which are collected by the Church, are recog-
nized abroad. For instance, President Grant called attention to the
fact that our birth rate is about 30 per thousand, and our death rate
about 7.5 per thousand. I think that during the past year it was 7.8
per thousand. For the last three or four years previously the ratio
has been about four births per death.

Recently, Dr. Max Haenle of the University of Erlangen, Germany,
who had been visiting in the United States for some time, called upon
us and told us that a number of the prominent sociologists of Germany
were interested in these figures and could hardly believe that among the
Latter-day Saints, or among any people, there could be such a high
ratio of births to deaths. Because, ordinarily, where people have a
high birth rate they also have a high death rate.

EXTENT OF CHARITY ASSISTANCE

President Grant also referred in his discourse to the work that is
being done by the Latter-day Saints in the way of charity and the dis-

GENERAL CONFERENCE

tribution of funds for the welfare of those in need. I should like this
morning" for a few moments to discuss some phases of this work that
is being carried on by the Church.

The Lord Jesus Christ, while he was upon the earth, stressed the
importance of helping those who are in need. In these latter days,
through the revelations of the Lord, it has been made plain to us
that the poor should be looked after ; and that we should give of our
means to help them. There should be manifest on our part proper
consideration and interest in the welfare of others.

FASTING AND FAST DONATIONS

In this connection I would like to call your attention to the im-
portance of a principle that I believe we are neglecting. That is the
principle of fasting and the giving of fast donations. The reports of
the Church as a whole last year indicate that the average per capita
fast offering was twenty-two cents per year. This is based on the
total membership. Actually about one-eighth of the members paid fast
donations, and the average amount for those who donated was $1.70
per capita for the year. I am inclined to think that many of us are
failing to observe the principle of fasting. Fasting in moderation is a
sound health principle. It is also a principle that promotes faith and
spirituality. It is a powerful means, in connection with prayer, for
the gaining of desired blessings. The Lord Jesus Christ emphasized
this fact. Also, in the revelations given to us in these days, he has
declared that fasting and prayer will bring results that otherwise may
not be obtained. If every one of us were to fast and were to give the
equivalent in value of our fast one day per month it would provide
sufficient means in the Church to take care of all those who are in need.
I believe that if this same principle were observed throughout the
United States there would be ample funds to provide for all the charity
requirements of the nation. I am sure that when we fast our liearts are
more open to consider those who are in need. I commend, therefore,
to the Latter-day Saints and to the presidents of stakes -and bishoprics
of wards the importance of stressing the observance of the fast day
and of directing the thoughts and minds of the people towards those
things that are for the mutual welfare and blessing of the Church as
a whole.

THE CHURCH AND SOCIAL WELFARE

The Latter-day Saints are recognized by the people of the world
as being greatly interested in the welfare of those who are in need.
We are giving, I believe, in porportion to our membership, more at-
tention and greater service to those who are in need of help than any
other community in all the world.

I am reminded of a statement that was made by a rather prom-
inent official who came here some time ago, — a representative of one of
the prominent national welfare organizations. He made some investi-
gations in this city and state, and after his return east he wrote a letter
of which the following is an extract :

ELDER SYLVESTER Q. CANNON

'The Church is certainly doing a great deal for its people and I would
like to say to you some things that I have said ever since my return to New
York— I believe that your Church group as a whole has the most socialized
outlook on welfare matters of any group with which I have come in contact."

RESPONSIBILITY FOR THOSE IN NEED

As the Lord has given this responsibility to the Church of looking .
after those who are in need, we recognize the importance of it. Yet the
primary responsibility for the welfare and care of those in need is not
upon the Church. You remember the Apostle Paul said upon one
occasion :

"But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own
house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel."

Net only the moral responsibility rests upon those who are related
to the family proper, to take care of those who are in need, but in this
state at least, the legal responsibility rests upon them to take care of
their relations. I can hardly conceive of parents, who have the means,
expecting the Church or the state to take care of their children who
may be in need. Nor can I see how children who have means can feel
that the Church or the state should be responsible for the care of their
parents if they are in need. In this connection let me state that statistics
show that, generally speaking, those Latter-day Saints who observe the
principle of tithing are less dependent in their old age than are those
who are not faithful in the observance of this commandment. Next to
the relatives, the state law recognizes that the counties are responsible
for the care of the poor.

DANGERS OF INDISCRIMINATE GIVING

The Church, while it has no legal responsibility, does undertake
to supervise and to help to see that no one suffers. That is the spirit
of this work. It is important that in our charity work we should learn
how to act in such a way as to promote the greatest welfare of those
who are in need, and at the same time to avoid that indiscriminate giving
which tends to cause dependence rather than promote independence. The
spirit of the Gospel and the policy of the Church have always been to
try to help people to help themselves, to endeavor to place them in a
position where they can be relieved of dependence and of difficulty and
secure conditions which will promote progress and prosperity.

FAMILY THE BASIC UNIT

The family is the basic unit of society and of the Church. We
should all strive to maintain happy normal families to the end that
there may be perfect unity, happiness and peace, and that the religious
influence and the spirit of the Gospel, may prevail in all these homes.

CARE OF ORPHANS AND DEPENDENT CHILDREN

Among other things the care of the orphan is upon us as well as
upon the state. Of course the responsibility rests primarily upon public

GENERAL CONFERENCE

institutions. We recognize the fact, however, that it is better that
orphan children should be placed in foster homes than in institutions.
In general it is found that a home is far better for a child than any
institution can be. And so, with the approval of the First Presidency
and in a modest way, we are inaugurating the policy of endeavoring
to take care of orphan boys. We are also seeking to find foster homes
for negiected children who cannot be properly taken care of in their own
homes. This is being done in co-operation with the Relief Society. We
have the Lund Home for boys and are undertaking now to make that
more of a clearing house for boys than an institution where they will
be kept continuously for long periods. We are trying to place them
in suitable homes with kind and loving foster parents, members of the
Church, who will seek to train them in righteousness and have an in-
fluence over them in the home that they cannot obtain elsewhere. In
like manner we are planning to help orphan girls, or those who are
dependent or neglected, to place them in other suitable homes if they
cannot be taken care of in their own homes.

REQUIREMENTS FOR NORMAL FAMILY LIFE

Students of social welfare recognize five essential factors to a
normal, happy family life. These factors are, first, health; second, em-
ployment ; third, education ; fourth, recreation ; and fifth, spiritual wel-
fare. The causes of po\erty may be various unfavorable conditions
such as sickness, unemployment, infirmity, improvidence, injury or
mental or physical deficiency. Now we are concerned in the Church
with seeing to it that so far as possible all those who are in need are
aided to gain permanent relief. Not that they should be given financial
help only, but have other careful attention. An investigation should be
made in kindliness, in sympathy and wisdom, and under the influence
of the Spirit of the Lord, as expressed by President Nibley this morn-
ing, to determine what their needs may be. If they are suffering from
ill health we should provide suitable medical or nursing care and see also
that they receive the healing ordinances of the Gospel. If they are
lacking employment we should try to obtain suitable employment for
them through the co-operative supervision of the Bishopric and the
Relief Society, tfn case of improvidence, if people are spending more
than they earn, of course that spells ruin, — it means failure. It is
important that they should be taught how to budget their accounts. As
President Nibley has sometimes said, they must spend less than they
earn. Otherwise they cannot expect to make progress and gain success.
If they are lacking in education we should plan ways and means for
them to gain education. Also it is very desirable that proper recreation
shall be provided the membership that they shall be trained in spiritual
things and become established in the truth of the Gospel.

VOCATIONAL TRAINING

With regard to the matter of employment, it seems to me that the
training of our young people generally in vocational education, — in the

ELDER SYLVESTER Q. CANNON

learning of trades and professions —is of vital importance. We find
that many of - those who seek employment are without any specialized
training, and yet this is an age of specialization. Increasing special-
ization is being required in all of the various vocations and professions.
It is a wonderful thing for our young people to be trained and developed
in those lines of activity whereby they may be able to gain a useful,
successful livelihood, and make steady progress in the affairs of life.

PROVIDING OF EMPLOYMENT

Responsibility rests upon the various agencies to endeavor to secure
and provide employment for those in need. In times of slack private
industrial undertakings and enterprises, it is the responsibility of the
cities and counties and states, to provide public work for those who are
in need in order to avoid having to give help without return. Other-
wise, people become dependent and do not develop the responsibility
that they should carry. The dole system in England is evidence of the
kind of policy that is wrong in principle. On the other hand, if pro-
vision can be made for more extensive public work in slack times by
the public corporations, a great deal can be done to help men to help
themselves and to make them feel that independence which everyone
ought to have.

BISHOPRICS, RELIEF SOCIETY, AND SOCIAL SERVICE

Now, with regard to the matter of investigation of those in need:
We feei that it is very desirable that the bishoprics throughout the
Church call upon the Relief Societies to assist them by rendering that
service for which they are preparing under the direction of the General
Board of Relief Society. Every case of need should be investigated
carefully, tactfully and sympathetically. Following the investigation
the bishopric and Relief Society can determine what is needed to relieve
the conditions, thereupon the form of relief needed should be provided.
It should be kept in mind that while the Church agencies are doing all
of this work, any financial help should first be sought from those who
are responsible therefor.

We are desirous that in all of the wards throughout the Church the
officers of the Relief Society who are being trained in the essentials
of social welfare work, in common sense and good judgment, shall, in
kindliness, endeavor to help those who are in need to solve their
problems, in order that they may become more useful and successful
members of the Church and of society. I am sure that every one of
us realizes the importance of striving to so prepare ourselves, and to so
qualify for the labors of ltfe, that we may be able not only to be free
of any help from the Church, but that, on the contrary, we may be
able to be of service to the Church in a spiritual way, and also to help
in a financial way to advance the purposes which the Lord has in
view ill the formation of this great work. It requires not only labor, it
requires also means. If every one of us can qualify' and be placed in
such position that we can help rather than be helped we shall feel much

GENERAL CONFERENCE

happier. Wei shall rejoice, the Lord will blesa us, and we will go for-
ward as united, happy families. I desire to suggest therefore, that if
the bishoprics of wards will place greater responsibility upon the Relief
Society, under their direction, they will be relieved of much detail. At
the same time the Relief Society can function in one of the great ob-
jectives for which this organization has been formed.

DEVELOPMENT OF INDUSTRIES

In order to provide more employment we need more industries.
We should all seek in cur various communities to develop those in-
dustries that shall be for the welfare of the people and for our own
progress and prosperity. So far as possible no raw material should be
shipped out from our midst. We should take the available raw ma-
terials and put them in finished state for consumptive use. If we will
do these things we will be prospered and blessed, and greater headway
will be made, and greater satisfaction prevail in the various communities
of the Church.

Our ideal in all these efforts should be generally to secure happy,
prosperous, religious homes. That the Lord may help and bless us to
sense our responsibility, that we may endeavor to act wisely in all
these things, and partake of the spirit and power of the Gospel, I ask
in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

A duet, "An Angel from on high," was sung by Cyril Martin and
Ida Hepworth, the choir joining with them in singing the chorus.

ELDER DAVID O. McKAY

As I have anticipated the discharging of this great responsibility
my mind has continually dwelt upon the value of true religion and of
right thinking as the important factor in a truly religious life.

I was pleased to hear President Grant in his all too brief address
at the opening of this conference stress the necessity of religion in life.
I am in perfect accord with all he said and with the entire proceedings
of this Conference.

TRUE RELIGION

I believe that the most important need of the world today is true
religion.

True religion has three manifestations ; first, the thought, the
feeling, the mental and spiritual attitude of the individual toward his
God; second, worship; and third, [service to one's fellows. Evidently
a man may conform to the outward forms of worship yet not be re-
ligious. But a man must be religious if he direct his thoughts and his
words towards God and let his worship and acts among his fellows
follow in accordance therewith.

WRONG THINKING

Charles Foster Kent in his Life of Jesus, speaks of "The Fatal
Crime of Wrong Thinking;" and approximately two thousand years

ELDER DAVID 0. McKAY

ago one of the greatest leaders and one of the ablest and wisest of
men said : "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." No one emphasizes
this truth more strongly than did Jesus. "With him," says Kent, "the
deadly sins were not neglect of the ritual, nor even crime punishable
by the laws of all civilized nations, but wrong ideas, motives and feel-
ings. He decried the fatal effect of hatred and jealousy in the mind of
the individual more vehemently than he did the act that hate and
jealousy prompt."

Let me cite two instances. On one occasion Jesus said regarding
the evil effect of harboring anger:

"Ye have heard that it was said by them of old Thou shalt not kill;
and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment;

"But I say unto you, That he who is angry with his brother without
a cause shall be in danger of the judgment."

Thus the Savior emphasized the fatal effect of wrong thinking. He
knew that if the mind could be directed rightly, if the evil thought and
tendency could be resisted, as President Nibley mentioned this morning,
the evil act would be minimized. Jesus does not lessen the seriousness of
these acts, or say that we should not punish them, but he emphasizes
the greater need of keeping the thoughts clean, the mind pure. An evil
tree will bring forth evil fruit ; a good tree will bring forth good fruit.
Keep the tree pure, the thoughts pure, and the fruit will be pure and
the life pure.

Again, he decried the evil of cherishing anger.

"If thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy
brother hath ought against thee;

"Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled
to thy brother."

Note how that is worded :

"If thou rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee" — not
only if thou hast ought against thy brother.

A double meaning in that. A man at the altar who would truly
keep his life in harmony with the fundamental principle of religion
should go to his brother who might be harboring ill will against him,
and before rendering the act of worship, seek understanding and re-
conciliation. In similar phrases the Savior emphasizes time and time
again the necessity of thinking right and the evil of wrong thinking.
This is the case in his admonition not to condemn one another : "Judge
not (or condemn not) that ye be not condemned."

Nov/, brethren and sisters, these illustrations will suffice to em-
phasize the point I have in mind, that in true religion, the fundamental
thing isi to keep our thoughts right towards our God and towards our
fellow men.

UNSTABLE OPINIONS

Now what are the sinful influences around us that tend to divert
young people's minds, from this right channel? We are living in an age

100

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which, measured by the standards of the Gospel, is full of unstable
opinions; and into that world of shifting uncertainty our young people
are thrown. Think for a moment how their thoughts are diverted from
our standards as they read some of the articles in current magazines.

From a leading magazine of the last month, I have culled, just at
random, this in relation to religion :

Academic scholars who are shaping the thoughts of youth are de-
claring that one religious faith is just as good or just as useless, ac-
cording to the professor's particular viewpoint, as another. "Buddhism,
Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, all spring from the same source, and
in the ultimate analysis mean the same thing."

That is one of the things which I call unstable, and which threaten
young people with an influence that will throw them into the fatal crime
of wrong thinking. In customs, and fashions, what was considered
bad taste yesterday, has become quite acceptable today.

In regard to the ideals of success and the standards that lead
to success, I quote this surprising statement :

"Success is not the result of hard work, clean living and personal integrity.
The vulgar, proud and haughty, not the meek, inherit the earth."

Young men and young women read those things, and their minds
are diverted from the channel of right thinking and right living. Un-
stable opinions, shifting uncertainties !

SINFUL INFLUENCES

Again the wholesomeness of our ancestral home-life is questioned.
That thought too is leading our young people to think in a. wrong
direction. .

Modesty, "that diamond setting to female beauty/' is in some
circles considered prudish, puritanic; and the influence is leading astray
some of our girls who are susceptible to the influence of society.

Ride along the highway, see the obnoxious and sometimes obscene
advertisements, how they flaunt themselves in the face of every traveler ;
and even obnoxious advertisements steal into our homes over the radio.

Now, the important question with us today is, what are we doing
to counteract this tendency towards fatal wrong thinking? I am going
to name onlv three common phases of our Church which I think are
fundamental toward right thinking and right living.

A SENSE OF RESPONSIBILITY TOWARD OTHERS

I should like to name first the duty that rests upon every parent
and upon every teacher within this Church to arouse within the mind
of the child a sense of responsibility toward other individuals and to-
wards society. The sacredness of personality is a fundamental teaching
of Jesus Christ. One great writer in this age, Harry Emerson Fosdick,
is right when he says, "Christ thought of personality as the central
fact in the universe and used it as a medium of interpretation of all
other parts." In the thought he approaches the more sublime teaching
of the Lord given through the Prophet Joseph :

ELDER DAVID 0. McKAY

101

"This is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and
eternal life of man."

In this truth is found a fundamental principle of true religion, and
it touches the very heart of the government of society and the peace
of the home. Let the child in the home realize that there are certain
things which he cannot do to gratify his own appetite, if in doing so
he brings sorrow or inconvenience to other members of the household.
A sense of duty to others should be a governing factor in' his actions.
Let me illustrate: In the paper the other morning was an account of a
tragedy of a sixty-five year old mother who ended her life after a
struggle of years to keep her boy from the clutches of the law. She
did save him until just the other day. The law could not touch him,
and she spent her fortune and her life and even scrubbed floors of
offices to gratify that boy's selfishness and indulgence. Well, he passed
many years without coming in contact with the law, but the crime of
wrong thinking was his years ago when he thought that that mother
should sacrifice herself to gratify his own indulgence.

O, youth of the land, think of the responsibility of keeping your
name unsullied ! Think of bringing comfort and happiness to the
mother who bore you ! There is the fundamental thought that will lead
you towards God and worship in true religion. He is a recreant indeed
who, to gratify his appetite or his passions, will bring a stain upon the
honored name he bears or sorrow to the heart of his mother. If a
man come from such a home, with such right thoughts as respecting
the rights of other persons and of society, he will not go far wrong in
his acts toward his fellowmen.

PRAYER

I wish to name as the second principle a little simple thing which
even in the naming this morning will indicate to you perhaps how many
have wandered from it, the simple principles of prayer. There are men
in our midst who say that prayer is not efficacious. Unfortunately
some of our young people believe such fallacious remarks. Prayer is a
fundamental principle of religion, the Christian religion particularly, and
prayer is a force for good. A praying man is a growing man. He is a
powerful man, as we have heard throughout this conference already.
Christ said :

"When thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy
door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in
secret shall reward thee openly."

It is said of a superior officer in the great war, that when he was a
youth his mind had been so diverted from the truth that he thought
prayer was a presumption. One day he found himself engaged in a
conflict in which earth and heaven seemed to mix. He felt his senses
reel, and in the midst of the conflict he found himself crying from his
heart: "O God, let me not lose my head, for my men's sake!" He
wrote afterwards : "That prayer was answered, and the D. S. O. which

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I now wear is the result of God's answering that prayer. I sometimes
think I should deposit it in some church, but when I look at that bit
of ribbon it reminds me of my prayer."

We are not in a great conflict of nations as were that soldier and
his comrades; we are not seeking the life-blood of each other, but I
tell you every day that we start out on our daily work and mingle
with our fellows we enter into conflict, and it is the appropriate thing
for every young man in the world to say in secret, to think and feel in
his heart, "O, let me not lose my head this day as I meet temptation,
as I am tempted to misjudge my fellows. Keep me from trespassing
upon the rights of others."

REVERENCE

A third principle that contributes to right religious attitude is
reverence — reverence for the Sabbath day and all things sacred. Rever-
ence directs thought toward God. Without it there is no religion. Let
us not make Sunday a holiday. It is a holy day, and on that day
we should go to the house of worship and seek our God. If we seek
him on the Sabbath day, get into his presence on that day, we shall find
it less difficult to be in his presence the following days of the week.
There should be more reverence for the house of worship. I am
offended when I see in Sunday School, or perhaps in Mutual, members
leave the service after having rendered a musical number. Undoubtedly,
they go to some other place to render the same service. Even that is
not sufficient justification for the mark of seeming irreverence in leaving
a worshiping assembly. Better secure somebody who can stay through-
out the service, for the assembly in a dedicated chapel is in the presence
of God. All are supposed to have come to meet him and worship him,
and there should be present that spirit of order and reverence which
will direct the worshipers' thoughts in the right channel.

God help us to serve him with our minds, might and strength.
With kind consideration for all mankind and particularly for those who
have given us honored names and pure lives ; with prayer and reverence
in our hearts, may we seek first the kingdom of God and his righteous-
ness, that all other things may be given to us, I pray in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen.

ELDER RULON S. WELLS

Of the First Council of Seventy

I confess I am taken somewhat by surprise in being called upon
to occupy this position, for, as I saw the time of the General Conference
rapidly slipping away and contemplated the great number of those yet,
presumably, to be heard from, I thought surely I can quietly retain my
seat without fear of being called upon to face this vast congregation ;
but now that I am called I sincerely hope that I may enjoy the favor
of the Lord while I stand before you.

ELDER RULON S. WELLS

103

President Grant emphasized in his opening address the importance
of religion and quoted from some eminent authorities an opinion that
religion is the true basis of all morality. I heartily concur in that
opinion. I do not believe that there is any morality independent of
religion. The present policy of the Church, as announced by President
Grant, in withdrawing from secular education, must not be construed by
the people as a withdrawal from the great cause of education; but it
does seem like an unnecessary duplication of work for the Church to
undertake to do, in an adequate way, what is already being so well done
by our public schools.

The greatest work of the Almighty is to educate his children.
This Church itself is a great institution of learning and is charged
with the responsibility of educating the world, and, in this connection,
with particular reference to our secular education, our public schools
are rendering to us and to our Church in common with our fellow
citizens of other religious views and their churches, a splendid service in
the accomplishment of this divine purpose, namely, the education of
mankind.

That education, from our point of view, is primarily the work of
the Church is fully borne out by these illuminating aphorisms found
in our own modern scriptures and the writings of the Prophet Joseph
Smith : "The glory of God is intelligence." "No man can be saved
in ignorance," and "A man is saved no faster than he gets knowl-
edge." From which we may assume that the great work of the
Master is one of education. From the very beginning it has been so.
Our first parents were led to partake of the fruit of the tree of knowl-
edge of good and evil, a very important part of our education. Was
that a calamity to the world or to them? No! On the contrary it was
a wonderful blessing. Cast out of the Garden of iEden where all was
peace and tranquility, for its governing law had been violated ; but
admitted into this world of struggle and strife — this school of expe-
rience where we are still partaking of the fruit of that tree. Blessed
are we if, with the knowledge thus obtained, we choose the good and
reject the evil.

Education then is manifold. It has to do with everything pertain-
ing to the growth and development of mankind. It is secular but also
spiritual, mental and physical ; moral and religious education go hand
in hand — the training of the heart and of the hand — all are included in
the curriculum of "God's Great School."

In our quest for knowledge it is strange, but interesting, to observe
its reaction upon the human mind as manifested in the varying attitudes
of mankind towards God and religion. Some have become atheists —
some agnostics, some believers. Atheists who deny the existence of
God, who say there is no God, how foolish ! How can one look out
into this natural world where everything bears the impress of divinity
and continue to maintain such an attitude? Is such a condition of
mind due to superior knowledge? Is it not more likely due to the
lack of it?

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"A little learning is a dangerous thing.
Drink deep or taste not the Pierian spring."

What benefit comes from such an attitude? Does it produce
happiness ? Or promote morality ? Or in any way benefit man-
kind ? Certainly not ! It sets God aside and thus removes the very
basic principle of al true morality. It having no reverence
leads to profanity and defiance,- thence rebellion against God and
ence leads to profanity and defiance, thence' rebellion against God and
his counsels and disregard of one's fellow man, for the love of God
and the love off man are inseparable. What is the basis of such morality
as may be found among atheists? Not the fear of God for they say
" there is none. What then ? Let me answer that question : It is
the fear of Man. Society imposes penalties upon evil doers. Jails
and penitentiaries are built for them. So if they desire to mingle in
society and avoid the penalties they must maintain a certain degree of
morality and decency ; but those whose morality is built upon this
foundation say to themselves : "If the law does not forbid (and there
are many evils which the law does not forbid) or if we can only
gratify our evil desires without being found out, then we may carry
on, without compunction, to our hearts content." What a miserable basis
upon which to build the moral life — the fear of man ! How foolish !
"The fool hath said in his heart, there is no God." But when a man
fears' God and has an abiding' faith in him, he knows that his all-seeing
eye will penetrate into the deepest recesses of the heart — he knows that
God will find him out. Then we may well say: "Be not afraid of the
face of man but fear God and keep his commandments."

The apparent conflict, and let me say it is only apparent, between
religion and science, arises from two definite causes. An imperfect
knowledge of science on the one hand and an imperfect knowledge "of
religion on the other. True science is knowledge classified and
must be true, hence it is a part of true religion which embraces and
accepts all truth. How I rejoice in the wonderful development of
science and invention, and I hope I may ever have an open mind ready
to receive all knowledge let it come from whence it will, for it has but
one source ; it comes from God who is the fountain of all truth.

Revelation is truth made known whether that truth be religious
or secular. Every invention or discovery, in fact all our understanding
comes from God, for "there is a spirit in man ; and the inspiration of the
Almighty giveth them understanding." It does not detract from the
glory due to the inventor to say that God uses him as an instrument
in his hands in bringing truth to light. God sends us his prophets to
teach us in the way of life ; he also sends us scientists, inventors and
discoverers. They too are servants of God and have a part in the great
work of educating mankind.

T am not an atheist and deny that knowledge leads to atheism, nor
am I an agnostic who holds that nothing can be known beyond material
phenomena, who regards faith as a positive weakness, mistaking it for

ELDER RULON S. WELLS

105

credulity, thus pulling down the blinds and shutting out from his
soul the light of faith while he gropes around in darkness and despair
No, I am neither one nor the other. God forbid! I thank the Lord
that I have a believing heart and see his hand in all that lies about
me. Whether I look out into the starry heavens or watch the budding
of the trees and the unfolding- of their leaves or whether in my secret
chamber where no human eye can see me, I am holding converse with
my Maker ; I feel and sense his presence in every fibre of my being, and
my heart is filled with joy and gladness for the testimony he has given
me of the truth of his glorious Gospel as restored to earth in all its
primitive purity in these last days, through Joseph Smith the Prophet.

I think sometimes that J am perhaps a philosopher. But do not let
that be taken to mean that I am professing great learning, for such is not
the case. Hut if we may say that to be a philosopher means what its
classic origin indicates — a lover of wisdom, then am I indeed a phil-
osopher, for I love wisdom; no matter how much I may lack or be
wanting in wisdom, yet nevertheless I love it and I want more wisdom.
There is no wisdom in denying God or in shutting out the light of
faith or in closing one's heart against the whispering of the Holy Spirit.
It is rebellion against the Creator of heaven and earth. "The beginning
of wisdom is the fear of the Lord,"' and we are living in the day spoken
of by John the Revelator wherein he says :

"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the ever-
lasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every
nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.

"Saying with a loud voice, Fear God and give glory to him; for the
hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth,
and the sea, and the fountains of waters."

Here then is wisdom. O ye inhabitants of the earth, hearken to the
words of the prophets. Open your ears and your hearts to that means
of knowledge and understanding which God has given unto us through
his great teacher, the Holy Spirit, that is striving with all the children
of men to bring them back to God, after we shall obtain the education
that he has provided for us in this earth-life which we are now living.
May God help us to learn our lessons well and to prepare ourselves
■for that which he has in store for us if we will only accept it; for
great is the knowledge, the learning, the education — even the knowledge
of the things of God whom to know i$ life eternal — if we will only be
wise in our searching after truth.

"Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart
of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

"But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the spirit searcheth
all things, yea, the deep things of God.

"For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which
is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God."'

May we then receive our diplomas through our diligence and faith
in this great school, even the "crown of life which the Lord hath
promised to them that love him." Amen.

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ELDER JOSEPH W. McMURRIN

Of the First Council of Seventy, and President of the
California Mission

I feel, my brethren and sisters, that this is a very wonderful
privilege that has come to me, and as has already been said by a
previous speaker, a tremendous responsibility. I sincerely trust that
the Lord's good Spirit, that influence that has been manifested through
the proceedings of this conference thus far, may be with me in the
few moments that I occupy.

My thoughts naturally dwell upon matters pertaining to missionary
work, as my responsibility is in the mission field. I have had a rather
unusual and remarkable experience, I feel, while laboring in California.
My appointment to that field of labor took place just a little prior to a
period of depression in a business way in the states of Utah and Idaho
and in other sections, while in California there was a'great degree of
business activity. Great building's were being erected, thousands of
homes were being built, and new divisions in the great city were being
opened up. Men who were out of employment were attracted from
many other states and came to California hunting for work. In the
days that I have in mind they were quite generally successful in finding
employment, and in turn they communicated with their friends and
relatives. The result has been a great influx of Latter-day Saints into
the state of California.

When I took up my missionary work we had on the records of the
California mission about four thousand souls. At the present time we
have over ten thousand souls, and there has been taken from the mission
some twelve or fifteen thousand members who are in the three stakes
that have been organized in California. So our responsibility and our
labors to a considerable degree have been to look after these Latter-
day Saints who have come there in such large numbers, and it has
been necessary to organize fifty, sixty, or seventy branches of the
Church. Of course thirty or possibly more of those organizations are
now in the stakes that have been established in Los Angeles and San
Francisco. But there are people still coming to California. Many of
them are disappointed when they arrive, for the reason that oppor-
tunities for employment are not as they have been in times gone by :
and there are a good many idle men who are anxious to work but who
cannot find employment.

This great influx of people has made it necessary to do a large
amount of building, and building operations have been made possible
by the generous attitude of the Presidency of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints. I suppose that some of the people do not
know that from the funds of the Church liberal contributions are made
for the erection of chapel buildings, not only in the stakes of Zion but
throughout the missions of the world. We have usually received from
the First Presidency from the general funds of the Church at least fifty
per cent of the cost of the chapel buildings that have been erected in the

ELDER JOSEPH W. McMURRIN

107

California mission, and this fifty per cent, speaking roughly, is suffi-
cient to buy the material that goes into the buildings. The result has
been that many buildings have been erected, probably thirty chapels,
representing a value of six or seven hundred thousand dollars. Nine of
those buildings were commenced during the past year and will be oc-
cupied, all of them, during the present year.

The people have operated to a considerable extent in the same
manner that this sort of thing was done in pioneer days. Aside from
the assistance to which I have referred, the people who make tip the
branches have given of their skill, (and many of them are mechanics),
and they have labored faithfully to build these buildings; sometimes
going after the regular day's work was over and working four or five
hours, away into the night, that they might have places in which to
worship the Lord our God.

We have had wonderful assistance from the missionaries who have
been sent to us. I have looked into the faces of stake presidents — Brother
Chipman, formerly president of the Alpine stake, Thomas Clark Cal-
lister of the Millard stake, President Wayne H. Redd; of the San Juan
stake, — they have all been in California. President Miles L. Jones, who
has now been called to preside over one of the missions in America,
and other men, some of them members of stake presidencies, have been
with us in California. One of these men said to me yesterday, when
I invited him to come again to California : "O, Brother Joseph, I could
never again have such a joyful time as I had while I was with you in
California." But I am sure he could have just as joyful a time again.

I have been wondering, as J have looked into the faces of these
splendid men who are here in this congregation, how these stake pres-
idents came to receive these missionary appointments? My under-
standing is that they offered their services in response to the call made
by the Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
I understand that there has been a suggestion made by the Presidency
that short-term missionaries may in some cases come from the ranks of
stake presidents, from the ranks of bishops, and from high councils in
the various stakes of Zion. I am sure that these men whom I have
named and other men whom I could name, have accomplished a marvel-
ous work in the California mission. I very much doubt if they realize
how great has been their ministry and how wonderful their influence.
Some of these men when they got into this labor became tremendously
interested, so much so that when the usual period of a short-term
mission of six months had passed by they did not want to return home
and they doubled the period. We have had short-term missionaries who
have actually suggested, when it was necessary for them to* return, that
they be not released. They had the spirit of this work upon them, they
felt its importance, and in some instances we have left their names upon
theNrecord, and they have come back and have again taken up the work
of preaching the Gospel, all at their own expense. Surely God's work
is great and marvelous.

We find occasionally new evidences coming to our attention to

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strengthen ns in the work of God. I would like to read an item that
has had a remarkable bearing upon my own feelings in regard to the
wonder of the work of the latter days. This clipping is from the Los
Angeles Examiner, I think of July, 1927. It says:

"Dr. Robert A. Millikan, head of the California Institute of Technology,
at Pasadena, yesterday made some startling statements, showing that the
question of the existence and traits of these cosmic rays may be considered
as scientifically determined, together with the fact that about one-tenth
of the energy in the heat and light given forth by our sun and stars is re-
turned from space by these rays. This was of such a striking nature, it
opened such perspectives to the imagination and vision of the astronomical
and physical features of the universe that the reporter persuaded Dr. Millikan
himself to write just his thought, and the doctor wrote: 'It is a legitimate
speculation, that since we now have evidence that the sun and stars are
actually radiating away their masses in the form of heat and light, some-
where in the universe the reverse of that process is going on, and light and
heat are condensing back again into ordinary matter, new stars thus being
in the process of forming as old ones disappear.'

"Coming from the one whom many learned men consider the foremost
physicist of the world, these statements carry immense weight and portend
future research endeavors of a phase new to science and new to all the
world."

And then, listen, my brethren and sisters, to this quotation from the
Pearl of Great Price, the Book of Moses, as given in vision and trans-
lated by the Prophet Joseph Smith:

"And it came to pass that Moses spake unto the Lord, saying: Be merci-
ful unto thy servant, O God, and tell me concerning this earth, and the in-
habitants thereof, and also the heavens, and then thy servant will be content.

"And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying: The heavens, they are many,
and they cannot be numbered unto man; but they are numbered unto me,
for they are mine.

"And as one earth shall pass away, and the heavens thereof, even so
shall another come; and there is no end to my works, neither to my words."

The great scientist, or the commentator on his words, declared
that the forming of new planets as suggested was new to science and
new to all the world ; and yet the great prophet of the latter times,
not a scientist, made declaration through this vision that the very
doctrine that is dawning upon the minds of men was revealed by the
Lord God of heaven. Praise to his name !

I hope that we will take the admonitions that have been given,
and that our testimonies will hold us secure in the work of God, no
matter what information may be presented that may be difficult for us
to explain. May God help us to. be true to our testimonies and to his
cause for ever and ever, I humbly pray in the name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.

An anthem, "Let the mountains shout for joy," was sung by a
quartet consisting of Hyrum Christiansen, Pearl K. Davis, James N.
Astin, and Jessie Williams, with the choir.

The closing prayer was offered by Elder Anchor C. Schow, Pres-
ident of the Lehi Stake.

Conference adjourned until 2:00 p. m.

AFTERNOON MEETING

The closing session of the Conference commenced promptly at 2 :00
p. m. President Heber J. Grant presided.

The choral music of the meeting was furnished by the combined
Salt Lake and Ogden Tabernacle Choirs, under the direction of Prof.
Anthony C. Lund.

The congregation and combined choirs sang the hymn, "The Spirit
of God like a fire is burning."

Elder Wilford W. Warnick, President of the Timpanogos Stake,
offered the opening prayer.

The combined choirs rendered the sacred anthem, "How lovely are
the messengers."

ELDER ORSON F. WHITNEY

Some splendid things have been said during this Conference, and
I am happy to find myself in hearty accord with them all. It may be
supposed that differences of opinion have been expressed by certain
speakers. But I do not recognize any such differences. It seems to me
that there has been a wonderful unanimity of thought and utterance in
the remarks of those who have addressed us.

DIFFERENCES OF VIEWPOINT

What appear to be differences in the teachings of the Lord's
servants at times, are not differences in principle, nor in conviction,
but only differences of viewpoint. We are all looking at the same object,
but not through the same pair of eyes. The splendid discourse of
Elder Ballard and the equally interesting talk of President Harris
(the latter at the Priesthood meeting) set me to thinking along this
line.

MOTHER AND DAUGHTER

I recall a trip to Rigby stake that I took some years ago, in
company with my kinsman, Elder J. Golden Kimball. We were to
attend a conference on Saturday and Sunday, but arrived at Rigby in
the afternoon of Friday. A woman's meeting was in progress in the
basement of the Tabernacle, and one of the sisters was holding forth
to a large assemblage of mothers, wives and daughters. As we went
in these words fell from her lips: "The girls of today are just as good
as their mothers were when they were young — only they know more."
And to clinch her argument she quoted a dialogue between a mother
and a daughter, in which the mother said: "I never thought of doing
such things when I was a girl." "No," answered the daughter, "if
you had you'd have done them."

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elder kimball's pro and con

The conference opened in due season, and Brother Kimball arose
to speak. The first thing he said that interested me was this: "There
isn't one man in a thousand that knows how to treat a woman." And
the sisters all over the house looked at each other and nodded their
heads approvingly. Then Golden fired off the other barrel : "And there
isn't one woman in a thousand that knows when she's well treated."
I came home more than ever convinced that there are two sides to every
question.

THE YOUTH OF ZION

I have faith in the young people of this Church — not because I
believe them without fault, nor because I think all are walking in the
ways of wisdom and shunning the downward road. I have faith in them
because of the 'character of their parents, because of the ancestry from
which they have sprung, and because of the promise made by the
God of Heaven, that "this Kingdom shall never be thrown down nor
given to another people.''"

A WORD FOR THE WAYWARD

You parents of the wilful and the wayward! Don't give them up.
Don't cast them off. They are not utterly lost. The Shepherd will
find his sheep. They were his before they were yours — long before
he entrutsed them to your care ; and you cannot begin to love them as
he loves them. They have but strayed in ignorance from the Path of
Right, and God is merciful to ignorance. Only the fulness of knowl-
edge brings the fulness of accountability. Our Heavenly Father is far
more merciful, infinitely more charitable, than even the best of' his
servants, and the Everlasting Gospel is mightier in power to save than
our narrow finite minds can comprehend.

A PRECIOUS PROMISE

The Prophet Joseph Smith declared — and he never taught more
comforting doctrine — that the eternal sealings of faithful parents and the
divine promises made to them for valiant service in the Cause of Truth,
would save not only themselves, but likewise their posterity. Though
some of the sheep may wander, the eye of the Shepherd is upon them,
and sooner or later they will feel the tentacles of Divine Providence
reaching out after them and drawing them back to the fold. Either in
this life or the life to come, they will return. They will have to pay
their debt to justice; they will suffer for their sins; and may tread a
thorny path ; but if it leads them at last, like the penitent Prodigal, to a
loving and forgiving father's heart and home, the painful experience
will not have been in vain. Pray for your careless and disobedient
children ; hold on to them with your faith. Hope on, trust on, till you
see the salvation of God.

Who are these straying sheep — these wayward sons and daughters ?
They are children of the Covenant, heirs to the promises, and have re-

ELDER ORSON F. WHITNEY

111

ceived, if baptized, the^gift of the Holy Ghost, which makes manifest
the things of God. Could all that go for naught?

Something that President Nibley said much impressed me. As I
interpreted him, he was reminding us of how Latter-day Saints are made,
and how we must build up the Church and Kingdom of God.

A SCENE FROM SHAKESPEARE

Shakespeare, in that wonderful play, "The Merchant of Venice"

I presume you are all familiar with It — pictures a court scene in which
Shylock, a Jew money-lender, is suing Antonio, a Christian merchant,
whom he hates and would fain destroy. Shylock holds a bond from
Antonio for a loan of three thousand ducats, which bond, if the loan
be not paid within a certain, time, permits the Jew to cut a pound of
flesh from the merchant's body, nearest his heart, that being the penalty
of the forfeiture. The money not being paid on time — Antonio's ships
having been lost at sea — Shylock demands the strict fulfilment of the
bond.

Portia, a beautiful and talented lady, disguised as a lawyer, repre-
sents Antonio and entreats the Jew to be merciful. Shylock spurns the
thought, and insists upon his pound of flesh. Portia then tells him
to take it, but warns him, to shed no blood, lest he violate the law of
Venice, which severely punishes an alien for seeking the life of a
citizen. "Take your pound of flesh, but if in the taking of it you shed
one drop of Christian blood, or cut off more or less than just one
pound of flesh, thou diest, and all thy goods are confiscate." Shylock
now tries to recede, but the law still holds him. For contriving, though
indirectly, against the merchant's life, all his goods are confiscated—
half to the State and half to Antonio — and his life "lies in the mercy of
the Duke." Then comes a most wonderful decision — wonderful in its
supreme absurdity. The Duke, who is the Judge, gives the Jew his
life on condition that he "presently become a Christian."

It is hard for me to believe that Shakespeare wrote those words —
unless his purpose was to satirize the State of Venice and its method of
dispensing justice to Jews. Shakespeare was noted for his rare good
sense, and T have always been told that good law is good sense. But
where was the good sense of trying to convert a Jew into a Christian
by a decree of court? Up to that point the logic is faultless, the
wisdom abundantly manifest ; after that, it is conspicuous by its ab-
sence. Christians, real Christians, are not made that way.

A COLONIZING PROPOSITION

3 place beside this fancied incident an experience of my own. I was
on a train in the State of Idaho, and had just taken breakfast and re-
sumed my seat in the Pullman coach, when a gentleman came and sat
beside me. Said he: "I gathered from your conversation in the diner
that you are a Mormon." I nodded assent, and he continued : "I have
long desired to talk with some of your leading men. I know only one
prominent Mormon" — and he named Rulon S. Wells as the man. "I

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am deeply interested in colonization, and regar-d the Mormon people
as the most successful colonizers in the world. I have noted the vain
attempts made by Baron Hirsch and other wealthy Hebrew philan-
thropists, to colonize poor Jews from the large Eastern cities upon
arid lands in the West; a project upon which they have spent millions,
and failed because of the utter lack of experience as colonizers on the
part of those whom they have sought to benefit. Now, if the Mormon
leaders would form a co-partnership with Baron Hirsch and his col-
leagues— they to furnish the millions, you the skill as colonizers- — what
a magnificent work might be accomplished ! And mind you, you could
stipulate in the contract, that every Jew thus colonized should become
a Mormon! And just see how that would) build up your Church!" I
remained silent, thinking of poor old Shylock and his proposed con-
version to Christianity. Does any Latter-day Saint or latter-day sinner
within the sound of my voice, believe that this Church could be built
up by a colonizing contract or anything else of a commercial char-
acter? No; "Mormons" are not made that way.

HOW MADE

There is but one way to build up the Church of God — and that
is God's way. not man's. Faith, repentance, baptism by immersion for
the remission of sins, and the reception of the Holy Ghost under the
hands of divinely authorized ministers of the Gospel — these are es-
sentials in the process. That gift of God which imparts a testimony
of the Truth, supplemented by toil and sacrifice and continued obedience
to the divine will — that is what makes true Latter-day Saints. Divine
revelation is the rock upon which this Church is built, and the gates of
hell cannot prevail against it.

AS DICKENS SAW THEM

What was the character of the early converts to "Mormonism'' ?
They were stigmatized as ignorant and malicious. It was ignorance and
malice that so stigmatized them. "Scum of the earth," "off-scourings
of civilization" — these were some of the pet names bestowed upon them
by their enemies. How utterly unjust, how grotesquely misapplied these
epithets, must be apparent to everyone who has any knowledge of the
facts. The great Charles Dickens, then a reporter on a London news-
paper, after visiting an emigrant ship anchored in the Thames, a ship
loaded with Latter-day Saints and about to sail for America, described
them as "in their degree the pick and flower of England." And if that
be true of England, it is true of America, and true of all the countries
from which the Saints of latter days have come. As a matter of fact,
they were among the best men and women of their time. Many were
descended from the Pilgrims and the Patriots who founded this Nation,
and in their veins, as sons and daughters of Israel, flowed the blood of
priests and kings, illustrious through a thousand generations.

AN ENGLISH HEROINE

A few years ago I spoke at the funeral of an aged English woman

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113

in the town of Payson. iShe had been at one time a member oi the
Eighteenth Ward in Salt Lake City, and I was her Bishop. Born
in far-away Gloucestershire, as a young girl she joined the Church after
hearing the first "Mormon" sermon to which she had ever listened.
She went home a Latter-day Saint, and her parents turned her from
the door. She had disgraced them, they said, by connecting herself with
a people, who, like the early Christians, were everywhere spoken against
—the unpopular and despised "Mormons." From that hour she earned
her own living, earned it honestly, virtuously, and within ten years, her
father, mother, brothers and sisters, by the mercy of God and influenced,
no doubt, by her heroic example, had all been gathered into the Church.'
They emigrated to Utah, and here she continued her good work in the
Temple, redeeming hundreds of her dead ancestors and becoming
literally a savior to her father's house. Is it not amazing that a little
slip of a girl, only nineteen years of age, could manifest such strength
of character, such devotion to principle? "Scum of the earth," for-
sooth ! Would to heaven there were more like her ! And there are
many like her in this Church, many thousands of them, just as true
and steadfast as she. They are the mothers, present or prospective, of
our boys and girls, men and women of the future.

"i CANNOT MAKE THE SACRIFICE"

Let me now cite a different example. In the State of Ohio in the
year 1877, while on my first mission, I formed the acquaintance of a
very estimable lady, the widow of a Union officer who had fallen in
battle during the Civil War. She loved her departed husband, revered
his memory, and expressed for him the fondest, deepest devotion. When
I told her of the doctrines of salvation for the dead, marriage for
eternity, and the sacred sealings that pertain to the Hereafter — explain-
ing that these were among the purposes for which the Latter-day Saints
build temples and officiate therein — she was wonderfully interested. "Do
you mean to tell me," she asked, "that if I become a Latter-day Saint
I can have such work done for my dear husband, and be his wife in
Eternity?" "Yes," said I, and she exclaimed: "I have never heard
anything so beautiful, so sublime. Convince me of its truth, and I
will be baptized if it were in a lake of living fire." Those were her
very words.

"I cannot convince you," I said, "but the Lord can, and will if
you ask him." "I will ask him," was her hearty response ; and no doubt
she did, for she wrote me in a few days to this effect : "The Lord has
given me the testimony that J desired, and I am now ready to be
baptized." Overjoyed. I answered telling her that I would make up a
little party and meet her at a certain point on the shore of Lake Erie,
and there baptize her.

The party was made up and about ready to start, when I received
another note from her, reading as follows: "<L never knew before what a
poor, weak, frail creature I am. I thought myself strong enough, brave
enough, to take this step— but I am not. If I should become a

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Mormon, all my friends would forsake me, I would lose my social
standing, and my name would be cast out as evil. I cannot make the
sacrifice. And yet I believe the doctrines that you have laid before me,
and regard you as a true servant of God. I hope the day will come
when we can stand upon the same plane asi brother and sister in the
Church ; but I cannot do that now."

I felt no anger — only disappointment and pity. How like the
impetuous Peter, I thought, who said to Jesus, "Though all men forsake
thee, I will not forsake thee;" and yet, when danger threatened, he
denied him thrice — denied that he knew his Savior. But Peter repented,
and the Holy Ghost, descending upon him, banished all timidity and
made of him a brave man, ready to die for the Master. It is said that
when about to be crucified, he begged the boon that it be with his
head downward, not deeming himself worthy to die as his Lord had died.

This good woman — for she was a good woman, a child of Israel, no
doubt, else why did she believe? — had she been baptized she would
have received the Holy Ghost, and it would have heartened and sus-
tained her through every trial. She thought herself brave enough to be
baptized in a lake of fire. But when weighed in the balance she was
found wanting. It has taken braver women to build up the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

THE IMPELLING MOTIVES

The motives that impelled the founders and early, members of this
Church were vastly different from the motives generally imputed to
them. It was not for gold and silver, houses and lands, nor any of
"the good things of this world," that they forsook home and country,*,
crossed the stormy ocean, dragged rickety hand-carts over sun-parched
plains and snow-clad mountains, to . settle in a wilderness and suffer
hardships and privations innumerable, while redeeming the waste and
filling it with farms, vine-yards and happy homes. No ; it was for
God and his Kingdom — nothing less. It was the love of Truth that
inspired and impelled them. And they did not wait for Truth to become
popular before espousing her cause. The poet Lowell little knew how
admirably he was painting their portrait when he penned these glowing
lines :

Then to side with Truth is noble,

When we share her wretched crust,
Ere her cause bring fame and profit,

And 'tis prosperous to be just;
Then it is the brave man chooses,

While the coward stands aside,
Doubting in his abject spirit

Till his Lord is crucified,
And the multitude make virtue

Of the faith they had denied.

Perhaps a little verse of my own may not be deemed unworthy of
association with Lowell's heroic stanza. I wrote it as an inscription
for a bronze statue, "The Hand-Cart Family," a work of our gifted

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115

Norwegian brother, Torleif Knaphus, unveiled some time ago by Pres-
ident Grant at the Bureau of Information :

Nor gold, nor glory, their exalted quest,
Who won for East the wide unconquered West.

They toiled o'er frozen crest, o'er parching plain,
Eternal wealth in higher worlds to gain.

Forever in remembrance let them be,

Who gave their all for Truth and Liberty!

And like begets like! Fear not for Zion's future. The sons and
daughters of the heroes and heroines who laid the foundations of this
work, will build thereon and bear off the Kingdom triumphantly. When
put to the test, they will "show the mettle of their pasture."

ELDER GEORGE F. RICHARDS

Notwithstanding the anxiety I have had since the commencement of
this conference, anticipating the call to speak, I appreciate the invita-
tion extended by the President of the Church for me to occupy a few
moments of the time in this, the concluding session of our conference.
I realize that I must be very careful not to offend by trespassing upon
the time, for I realize there are a number of brethren whom it is
desired to hear before the conclusion of the meeting.

I have enjoyed this conference very greatly, notwithstanding the
anxiety I have experienced. In fact, I have thought it to be one of
the best conferences we have ever had, and as I looked upon the con-
gregations of saints assembled here to receive the word of the Lord, and
remembered that by the use of these amplifiers and radios there would be
many thousands of other members of the Church and non-members who
would hear what has been said, I have been greatly pleased and have
been made to rejoice. But when I contrast the number here assembled
with the total membership of the Church, which I understand is about
655,000, I am made to realize that there is but a very small percentage
of the people that get the benefit directly from this conference.

THE CONFERENCE PAMPHLET

I have a thought in mind that I desire to express, a plan by which
these splendid discourses may reach a greater number of our people.
The proceedings of these meetings have been kept and will be printed
verbatim and appear in a pamphlet or booklet known as The Con-
ference Pamphlet, for distribution. I think that these pamphlets
ought to be found more generally in the homes of the saints. I think
we should publish a very great many more of them than we have
had need for in the past. I have thought, during this conference, that
some of these discourses were real gems. The Spirit of the Lord has
been poured out upon us. The speakers have been magnified. They
have given us the word of the Lord in such impressive, convincing
manner that I have felt that we ought to provide means by which these

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words might have a wider circulation. Take, for example, the talk-
made by Elder Stephen L. Richards on the subject of tithing, one that
is usually spoken of as a very dry subject. — He dressed that subject in
such attractive attire that it was made beautiful, impressive and con-
vincing. That discourse should be read in the homes of all the saints
by all those who have not had the privilege of hearing it.

THE IMPORTANCE OF TITHE-PAYING

The subject of tithing has claimed considerable of the time of
this conference. A most excellent discourse upon that subject was de-
livered at the priesthood meeting by President Grant — very impressive
indeed. The importance of the subject demands that it have considera-
tion in our conferences and that it have consideration in our homes. I
desire my family to be blessed of the Lord. I therefore desire that
they pay their tithing. This Gospel which we have received is one
of sacrifice all along the line — In order to be disciples, worthy of the
Master, we must be willing that all of our substance be used as far
as necessary for the carrying on of the work of the Lord. We must
be willing to lay down our lives if need be for the Gospel's sake. We
may not be called upon to make such great sacrifices but we are called
upon to give one-tenth of our interest annually as a tithe with which to
assist in carrying on the work of the Lord, looking to the saving of
souls ; and sacrifices of this kind bring forth the blessings of heaven :
I have proved it. Others have proved it. I know it is true. It brings
a peace, a joy, a hope, and an assurance of the blessings of the Lord
and his favor that scarcely anything else will do.

Now, this places a responsibility upon parents. I have an un-
married son ; not because he does not believe in the law of tithing do
I want him to read that discourse, because het does believe in it, and
practices it to the extent that he has means, interest or income; it
is not that I think the young people of Zion do not believe in the
principle of tithing or that the saints generally do not believe in it, —
but it is that we may have understanding of the obligations resting upon
us, and the blessings that may accrue to us by faithfully performing
that duty.

GEMS OF INFORMATION

I call attention to another discourse, that delivered by Elder Ballard.
1 thought it was a wonderful discourse. He never could have de-
livered it without the help of the Lord, and I endorse it fully. It is what
we might call a delicate subject, referring to the subject of sex, purity
of life, and so forth ; but in a most masterful manner that discourse
was delivered, in words that could be understood and yet would not
offend the delicate sensibilities of any young woman. I desire that the
young people of Zion who are not present shall have opportunity of
reading that discourse. The Lord has blessed the Church with some
very efficient teachers of his word and will and I appreciate them, and
I would like the members of the Church to have the opportunity of

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117

receiving these gems of information and truth. If T can leave this
word impressed upon the minds of Latter-day Saints in such a way
that they will secure the Conference Pamphlet, and possibly in their
home evenings consider it with their sons and daughters, then I shall feel
that my remarks have not been made in vain.

"a marvelous work and a wonder"

Brethren and sisters, we are reminded that yesterday was the
ninety-ninth birthday anniversary of The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints. Already preparations are being made for a grand
centennial celebration, suited to the occasion to take place one year
hence. There have been ninety-nine years of wonderful accomplish-
ments in the earth. A wonderful work, a marvelous work and a wonder
among the children of men. A reform has been wrought in the minds
and lives of many thousands of people. A reform has been wrought
in the religious creeds of this world ; and the reformation of the future,
I am sure, will be very much greater so far as respects the creeds of
this world. Think of it. Hundreds of thousands of honest souls have
found a life of happiness, joy, hope — yea, assurance of eternal life, —
through yielding obedience to the laws and ordinances of this Gospel,
and have passed on to their reward ; the reward of the faithful ; the
reward of eternal life. And there are now in the Church, in the neigh-
borhood of 655,000 souis enjoying the blessings of the Gospel, happy
in serving the Lord, in making the sacrifices, having a testimony and a
knowledge of the truth of this work, so that they are not in doubt. The
future is clear before them. If they can but continue true and faithful
to the cause and the covenants and obligations they have entered into,
the reward of eternal life is certain. Ninety-nine years of accomplish-
ments. These accomplishments will be portrayed in an impressive
manner at the end of a hundred years.

appreciation of blessings

In vour presence, my brethren and sisters, I feel to acknowledge
the hand of God and his blessings unto me and unto my people whom
I love. For I love the Latter-day Saints and I love the Lord and his
great work. I appreciate the Gospel, its blessings and ordinances, as
of course you do. I appreciate my membership in the Church, the
fellowship I have with the Latter-day Saints, and the association I have
with them. I appreciate my association with the leaders of this Church
whom I know personally and well, and know them to be servants of God,
worthy of their calling. I am thankful to be permitted to labor with
them in the midst of this people, "to contribute a little, that which I am
able to do, towards the advancement of the work of the Lord here upon
the earth. I am thankful for his sustaining power that has attended me
■ in my humble administrations. If I could have done many many times
more than I have for this cause, I would still be indebted to the
Church. The Church owes me nothing. It owes no man anything.
No man who ever became a member of this Church has fully paid the

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debt of obligation that he owes to God and to this Church and his
religion, no matter how faithful he may have been.

DILIGENCE AND FAITHFULNESS URGED

Brethren and sisters, do not be discouraged with the duties and
obligations resting upon you ; of paying your tithes, offerings, con-
tributions, necessary in the labor of the ministry at home or abroad. If
we attend to these regularly and faithfully, they will tie us closer and
closer and anchor our faith and our souls, and we will be sure of
salvation as long as we continue so to do. It is only those who
understand these things and have not the faith to yield obedience and
make the sacrifices that the Gospel entails, who are unhappy or dis-
appointed in any degree. We cannot afford, brethren and sisters, to be
indifferent in this great work or to neglect a single duty.

I know that this work is true as I know that I live. I desire to
be true and faithful to the end, and in order to be so, I know that
I must have the help of the Lord; and the assurance I have is that
if I do my daily duty I will have his help and jl will be able to remain
faithful. I pray the Lord to help me and you, my brethren and sisters,
to be faithful and appreciative of his love, kindness and mercy, and
I do it in the name of 'Jesus Christ. Amen.

ELDER BRIGHAM H. ROBERTS

Of the First Council of Seventy

"We believe all that God has revealed, all that he does now reveal,
and we believe that he will yet reveal many great and important things
pertaining to the Kingdom of God." (Article of Faith No. 9.)

One of the things that has greatly delighted me in this conference
has been the prominence given to the Book of Mormon and to the
importance of it as a means of acquainting the world with that system
of truth for which we stand. But the passage from our articles of
faith just repeated reminds me that the Book of Mormon is only one
out of very many things that may aid us in this work of making God's
message known to the world.

We seldom hear the Doctrine and Covenants spoken of as a volume
of scripture and important as a help in convincing the world of the
truth of our message. Perhaps I can present the thought I hold in my
mind upon that subject by relating a circumstance that happened very
many years ago in the Southern States. On one of the branch streams
of the Tennessee river in one of our conference districts, there lived a
woman of some considerable local fame, I may say, noted for her
strong character, her intelligence and her religious sincerity. It so
happened that she invited us to her home on one of our visits to induce
her to read the Book of Mormon and to pay attention to the doctrines
we had explained. Several of the local ministers who rather depended

ELDER B. H. ROBERTS

119

upon her as something of a pillar in one of their churches, heard with
alarm the fact that she was reading the Book of Mormon, and called
upon her to persuade her to give up her perusal of it ; and gave her the
stereotyped idea used by opponents of the book at that time, and
brought to her pamphlets and articles from periodicals to show that the
Book of Mormon was fiction and originated in the Spaulding Romance.
They urged her to read this testimony against the book, and she
promised them she would do so. In the course of a week or two they
returned to her to inquire the progress she was making, and she an-
swered them in substance in this way: "I am somewhat confused in
relation to this Book of Mormon. The Mormon elders tell one story
of its origin and you tell another, and I must confess I am somewhat
perplexed about it; but," said she, "here is another book that the
Mormon elders have presented to me and which I have read. They
call it the Doctrine and Covenants. It purports to contain a number
of revelations to Joseph Smith which he is said to have received. It is
nearly equal in volume to the Book of Mormon, and there is no
question at all in relation to the authorship of this book. None of
you questions, that Joseph Smith wrote it. He is the author of it, and
claims everything in it to be inspired of God; and I wish to state to
you," said she, "that this book, — the revelations that are in it — contains
as much evidence, and even more evidence, that the man who pro-
duced it was inspired of God than does the Book of Mormon that it
was written by inspiration. Now what have you to say to that, and how
will you explain away that?" Of course they had no explanation. The
Book of Doctrine and Covenants stands unquestioned as to its author-
ship, and I wish to express a belief that there is evidence of inspiration
in it equal to that of the Book of Mormon.

Let me just hurriedly call your attention to a few of the prominent
revelations of the Book. If :I had time I would read some of them
but that is out of the question. A number of men came to the Prophet
Joseph while he was yet engaged in translating the Book of Mormon,
and asked him to use the sacred instruments to inquire of the Lord
for them. Most of them wanted to know what was to be their lot
and part in this great institution that they saw coming into existence.
The answer to those inquiries is contained in some eight or ten of the
early revelations received as, I have described ; and iri every case they
were told that those who were inspired of the Lord with desires to
help in bringing forth this work, must proceed upon the lines of faith,
and hope and charity, with an eye single to the glory of God, and with an
honest desire and purpose to bring to pass the salvation of the souls of
men; and that humility united with these other qualifications equipped
them for this great and wonderful work that God was about to bring
forth. In no single instance were they promised the honors of men
or the reward of personal prosperity and fame. That, to me, is one
of the clearest evidences that the Prophet was inspired of God.

Following through the Doctrine and Covenants you will come to
the wonderful revelation in the 20th Section, in which is outlined the

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doctrine, and being, and character of God ; the ordinances of the Gospel ;
the moral law in part, together with the arrangement for the first
simple step in the organization of the quorums of the holy priesthood ;
and the exact terms of the ordinances of the Gospel, including that
most masterful prayer which consecrates the holy sacrament. In the
first part of it is the great and eternal doctrine of our faith in God,
the Eternal Father, and in Jesus Christ hi§ Son ; and these emblems asso-
ciated with the prayer bear witness of their being the symbols of man's
salvation. In the second part is named the covenants which man makes
with God. bringing about that union with God by which man may
participate in the enjoyment of his Spirit and always have it to be
with him. Then I might mention the section read by President Nibley
this morning, Section 50, containing the beautiful doctrine which he ex-
pounded. Section 68, laying the foundation for the inspiration and
real force of the priesthood within the Church. Section 84, with its
doctrine of God's assurance that he will be with his servants. Section
89, the health law of the Church as given by the Lord in the Word of
Wisdom. Section 88, the revelation in which the "imminence of God,"
in the universe ; the Spirit that proceeds forth from him, bearing upon
it all the attributes and powers of God, creative power, world-sustain-
.ing power, vital force, intelligence-inspiring power, the love-manifest-
ing power through Jesus Christ, and harmonizing as no other revela-
tions harmonize, the great universe of God and the union of our
world with that universe. Section 107 should not be omitted, which is
the doctrine of the priesthood, and which portrays the relationship and
operations of the several quorums of the priesthood. All these things
are set forth, and it is the record of the living voice of God as it has
been manifested in bringing forth this great Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints, and bears the impress of God's inspiration upon it.

Perhaps I might call your attention to the fourth book of scripture
which the Church accepts officially and by which it is willing to be judged,
— The Pearl of Great Price. The Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doc-
trine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price are prized by us above
all other books. If the world but had the Pearl of Great Price, and the
knowledge it conveys, it would shed a penetrating light upon all the
scriptures that our Christian friends acknowledge, and make known
the truth of God ; how, from the beginning, instead of dealing with
mere fragments and hints at the plan of salvation, it would set forth
the whole plan clearly. About all the world has in the Old Testament
about the Gospel is the statement in Genesis that the seed of the
woman should bruise the serpent's head — wound him in a vital part,
overcome him ; and the implication that is to. be seen in the offering
of Abel, and the rejection of the offering by Cain; with here and there
an indication of information that underlaid the testimony of those
patriarchs that they had some knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
But from the book of Moses and in the Book of Abraham, in the Pear!
of Great Price, we get revelation of the plan of salvation that was
instituted in heaven among the spirits that were the children of God,

ELDER B. H. ROBERTS

121

and an explanation of the earth life of man that is truly enlighten-
ing. Patriarchs from Adam to Noah have been some of the
mightiest servants of God and the greatest prophets. They knew
very much more than the fragmentary knowledge that has come to the
world in our day.

For instance, how helpful it would be if the Christian religious
world of today could have such a summary of the Gospel as it was
known among the ancients, according to the1 Book of Moses, and that
rather mysterious and unknown character, Enoch, who represents God
as giving the following revelation to Adam :

An Ancient Discourse ,on the Gospel —

"And now, behold, I say unto you: This is the plan of salvation unto all?
men, through the blood of mine Only Begotten, who shall come in the
meridian of time.

"And behold, all things have their likeness, and all things are created
and made to bear record of me, both things which are temporal, and things
which are spiritual; things which are in the heavens above, and things
which are on the earth, and things which are in the earth, and things which
are under the earth, both above and beneath: all things bear record of me.

'And it came to pass, when the Lord had spoken with Adam, our
father, that Adam cried unto the Lord, and he was caught away by the
Spirit of the Lord, and was carried down into the water, and was laid
under the water, and was brought forth out of the water.

'And thus he) was baptized, and the Spirit of God descended upon him,
and thus he was born of the Spirit, and became quickened in' the inner man.

"And herheard a voice, out of heaven, saying: Thou art baptized with fire,
and with the Holy Ghost. This is the record of the Father, and the Son,
from henceforth and forever;

"And thou art after the order of him who was without beginning of days
or end of years, from all eternity to all eternity"

"Behold, thou art one in me, a son of God; and thus may all become
my sons." (Pearl of Great Price, Book of Moses, 6:62-68.)

This is an outline of the Gospel which Adam knew, which Enoch
preached, which Noah plead with the people to accept in his day ; and
it proves that the patriarchal ages were not as blind to the things of
God as the world imagines them to have been.

Permit me to say that the Book of Moses from which I have read,
was brought forth by the Prophet Joseph Smith — who received it as
a revelation from God — beginning as early as June, 1830, about three
months after he completed the Book of Mormon ; and by the close
of December of that year the whole book as we know it was com;
pleted. If the world would only accept the knowledge of the Gospel as
it was in ancient times among the inhabitants of the earth, we would
find the matter of convincing them of our truth very much improved.

This book of Scripture, the Book of Moses, as well as the Book
of Mormon, then, brings light and truth into the world for the salva-
tion of men. God grant that this light and truth may be extended
among the nations, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

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ELDER HYRUM G. SMITH

Presiding Patriarch of the Church

I am very grateful, my brethren and sisters, to have this privilege
of seeing this house so well filled in another annual conference of the
Church. I heartily accord with the wonderful testimonies and teach-
ings which have been given during the conference, and am grateful for
the privilege of bearing my testimony, thus mingling my voice with the
voices of my brethren.

• y OUR BLESSINGS ,

Many of the brethren have expressed appreciation for the blessings
which have come to the Church, each one of them having said some-
thing pertaining to our great blessings ; and I have thought during the
singing and the speaking of the conference that surely the Lord has
guided and blessed it.

I would like to refer to one verse of the beautiful song that was
sung today by the choir, which points particularly to the thought of our
blessings. These lines have clung to my memory:

"The Gentile fulness now comes in,
And Israel's blessings are at hand;
Lo! Judah's remnant, cleansed from sin,
Shall in their promised Canaan stand."

I have wondered what claim we hold upon those wonderful bless-
ings, and yet each one of the brethren has explained and borne testi-
mony to the kindness and mercy of the Lord in bringing about these
particular times in which we live and the promises of the Lord to his
chosen Israel throughout the different times of the world.

THE BLESSINGS OF EPHRAIM AND MANASSEH

I am trying to bring to you a thought that has been prevalent in
my own mind relative to these important promises, and I have in mind
the great blessings which were given by the great patriarch Jacob to
his grandsons Ephraim and Manasseh. When these two lads were
taken to their grandfather for their blessings, their grandfather was
feeble and dim of sight because of his age. There seems to have been
a peculiar custom in those times that when a thing of this kind hap-
pened the older son was to receive the blessing of the right hand
and the younger son the blessing of the left hand. But for some
reason which was not explained, only that the patriarch said that he
knew what he was doing, when his son Joseph was perturbed in his
feelings Jacob in blessing these two boys crossed his arms, placing
his right hand upon the younger and his left hand upon the older, and
blessed Ephraim first. In his explanation to Joseph, the father of
these boys, Jacob said : Manasseh shall become great, and he shall
receive his blessings ; but Ephraim shall become greater, and he shall
be a multitude of nations.

You heard in the report made by the President of the Church

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123

relative to the growth of the Church, that there are today more than
one hundred stakes of Zion. It is the policy and order of the Church
at the present time to have at least one patriarch, who is authorized
to bless the members of the stake, and in so doing, declare their lineage,
in a similar way to the manner in which Jacob blessed his grandsons, and
his own sons. At the present time in the Church the great majority
of those receiving their blessings are declared to be of the house and
lineage of Ephraim, while many others are designated as members of
the house of Manasseh ; but up to the present time we have discovered
that those who are leaders in Israel, no matter where they come from,
no matter what nation they have come out of, are of Ephraim; while
the blood of Manasseh is found in the tribes and nations of the Indians
of North and South' America. They are great, they are wonderfully
blessed, but Ephraim seems to prevail in the greater blessings, greater in
responsibility, and in faithfulness to the Lord's work. And so people
Thave wondered about it. Why do the patriarchs declare that most of
us are of Ephraim?

THE DAY OF EPHRAIM

It is my testimony that "today" is the day of Ephraim. It is the
day which the Lord has set to fulfil his promises made in the times
of the ancient patriarchs, when he said that he would scatter Israel
to the four corners of the world, and that Ephraim should be scattered
in, all the nations, and then in the "last days" be gathered out again.
Many are being gathered out by our missionaries, as "one of a family
and two of a city ;" and they are found here, gathered into a gathering
place appointed of the Lord, and they are receiving his blessings. This
is why so many of us are declared to be of Ephraim. If there were
time I would like to speak further about our blessings. The Prophet
Joseph Smith, was declared to be of this house of Joseph, a chosen
vessel. Read II Nephi, chapter 3, relative to the promises made re-
garding him. But the principal point I have in mind at the present time
is the fact that we may discover our lineage, or where we stand in Israel.

There have been discovered also, a few of the house of Israel who
belong to the tribe of Levi, — an ancient priest. There are also a
few of some other tribes of Israel, but very few except those of the
house of Jacob, as represented by Ephraim in the great multitudes who
are enjoying the blessings of the Church, and those who are of
Manasseh — the great multitudes of Indians in North and South
America.

THE LORD'S PROMISE UNTO NEPHI

The Prophet Nephi (a Manassehite), who was privileged to wit-
ness the progress and even the destruction of his people, received a
particular promise from the Lord, wherein he was comforted in the
fact that though his people would be chastised and destroyed they would
not be utterly destroyed, but that they should be mixed with his
brethren so that the blood and the blessings of the prophets oi that
people would not be utterly lost. — Through my experience in meeting up

124

GENERAL CONFERENCE

with some of our visitors from the islands of the Pacific Ocean, I
was able to discover that the natives of New Zealand and the natives
of the Hawaiian Islands are chiefly of that mixed blood which the
Lord promised should not be utterly, destroyed, but that in the last days,
through their faithfulness, should receive the blessings of the Lord
and even become a white and delightsome people.

The promises of the Lord are being fulfilled and the blessings are
being administered under his counsel through his holy servants.

I pray that the Lord will bless us and that he will continue to
inspire the leaders of the Church to lead us in the ways that he would
have us go, and that the promises that the Lord has made concerning
Israel, (the Jews and others in the great house of Israel) may be
rapidly realized.

"judah's remnant"

The Jews are preparing to return to the land that was given to them
for their inheritance. Many of them have already returned. 5o
"Judah's remnant will receive their blessings in their promised Canaan."
However a few of the Jews have come into the Church.

THE LAW OF ADOPTION

We have also a number in the Church, who, so far as. we are able
to judge and learn, did not originally beiong to the house of Israel at all.
Then you say, where do they get their blessings? What is their lineage?
Well, I explain that in this way: When you adopt a child that does
not belong to you originally, and that child grows up in your family,
it obtains its blessings the same as othef members of your family. It
is the same as your own. If I adopt a child that is born in the world
1 share my blessings with that child, as he shares his blessings with
me. In my household I am responsible, he partakes at the same "table,"
the same blessings. By the law of adoption that child receives his right
to the blessings of my household, and therefore he belongs to my
household through the law of adoption. Through our faithfulness we
are all adopted into the fold of Christ. We are his and his blessings
are upon us, through our faithfulness in obeying the laws of his Gospel.
And) so, if other people outside of the house of Israel have faith and
obedience enough to come into the Church they will receive their lineage
and blessings according to the house which they enter. If they enter
into the family of Israel they will receive the same lineage as the house
or tribe that adopted them, just the same as the adopted child receives
the blessings of the family that adopted him.

That is my idea. I hope that I have made it clear. And so today
we are discovering, through the kindness and mercy of the Lord, that
his promises are being fulfilled and that his blessings are being re-
ceived by those who are observing his laws and keeping his com-
mandments.

TESTIMONY AND BLESSING

I have a testimony that this is the work of the Lord; that the

ELDER HYRUM G. SMITH

125

Prophet Joseph Smith was a prophet in very deed, the descendant of
Joseph who was sold into Egypt, through the lineage of Ephraim, a
promised vessel in the hands of the Lord; and that those who have
succeeded him in the advancement and progress of the Church have
also been inspired and blessed as chosen vessels in the hands of the
Lord. I am very grateful for the testimony I have; of the divinity of
this work. I pray the Lord's blessing upon those who carry responsi-
bility in the work entrusted to them, — President Grant and his asso-
ciates, the General Authorities, you men and women who are laboring
throughout the stakes and wards, in the Church schools and in the
temples, also the brethren and sisters who are laboring in the mission
field. I pray God's blessings upon you all and upon the entire Church
and its membership and those who befriend it, — the honest in heart
and the worthy throughout the world. May God's blessings go with
you to your homes, and help you to serve the Lord and keep his
commandments, and help to bring about his holy purposes, I pray in
the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

One of the regrets that we nearly always have in our conferences is
that we do not seem to have quite time enough to hear from all of those
whom we would like to hear. As you will see by the clock there are
only twenty minutes left and we have yet four speakers. We will ask
Brothers Charles H. Hart and J. Golden Kimball to occupy fifteen
minutes between them, and we shall not have time to hear the others.

ELDER CHARLES H. HART

Of the First Council of Seventy and President of the
Canadian Mission

While traveling through the State of Vermont, last summer, ter-
ritory newly added to the Canadian mission, while visiting the granite
works at Barre, Vermont, my attention was called to an issue of
The Granite Cutter's Journal, published in Quincy, Massachusetts, con-
taining a splendid article entitled "The Mormon Battalion Monument",
illustrated by four full pages of photographs of the monument. The
editor said that one look at the photographs of the monument and he
"realized that a single view of it would not be sufficient to bring
out its great merit ;" therefore all four photographs were reproduced.

A letter from the Secretary of the American Granite Association
was cjuoted in part as follows :

"I think the monument is one of the finest things! that has ever come to
our attention in this office. It is strikingly original in the matter of design,
and the photographs show that the carving around the base is executed with
unusual delicacy and accuracy. Insofar as the photograph shows, I do not
believe that there is another piece of granite carving anywhere in the country
done in such delicate detail unless it is the Robert Burns Monument in Barre,
Vermont."

126

GENERAL CONFERENCE

The secretary stated that the Salt Lake monument is good proof
of the fact "that anything that can be carved in marble can be carved
in granite if it is seamed, designed and executed with proper knowledge
of the cutting of granite." He then presented descriptive matter as
to each panel. As to the panel "The Enlistment," the article states:

"Upon the north side of the monument is shown 'The Enlistment' of the
Mormon Battalion under the flag of the United States of America. Dominat-
ing this scene is the central figure representing the eager, fearless and ag-
gressive spirit of youth. A prominent feature of the scene is a portrait of
Brigham Young in high relief. Captain James Allen is shown in the back-
ground, as are also the youths grouped around the enlistment table. This
is the scene of farewell, which sentiment is expressed in all of its poignancy
in the grief of the lover, and in the parting of the volunteer with his wife
and children."

Then there is presented other descriptions and the inscriptions also
upon the monument.

Inasmuch as it became my duty under the appointment of his Ex-
cellency, the Governor, and two of his predecessors, to share with others
particularly in the raising of the last twelve or fifteen thousand dollars
that had to be obtained by popular subscription, and inasmuch as I have
never had the opportunity before of expressing my thanks to those
people who so generously came to the support of the committee at
that time, although I realize that this was purely a civic enterprise,
I am wondering whether it would not be in place to extend thanks
to the many thousands that I know are within the sound of my voice,
for their response to the requests by telephone and personal appeal
for the raising of these last thousands.

In passing through the city of Chicago the other day I was re-
minded of our M. I. A. slogan, "We stand for law, for the people who
live it, and for the officers who enforce it." At Springfield, Illinois,
there appeared before the judiciary committee the noted criminal lawyer,
Mr. Clarence S. Darrow, in opposition to a bill which had been spon-
sored by the Advisory Council of Chicago, and by the Bar Association
of Chicago. Air. Darrow received about the same cordial reception at
the hands of State Senator Roy C. Woods and Judge Harry M. Fisher
of the Circuit Court of Chicago, that Goliath of Gath received at
the hands of the shepherd boy David. Bishop Whitney has asked the
question — some of you may have heard it — "Why was Goliath sur-
prised at the sling-shot thrown by David?" and the answer was, "Be-
cause nothing of that kind had ever entered his head before."
(Laughter.) I am sure that this modern Philistine received a salutary
lesson from the reception which he received at Springfield the other
day.

Judge Fisher said that the criminal situation in Chicago is due to
the "continuous vilification of our courts ; to the impotence of those
courts under our law that has led to a belief among the criminal element
that it may safely come to Chicago and practice its business and escape
punishment."

I wish that the sentiment of the M. 1. A. slogan recited in concert

ELDER CHARLES H. HART

127

in the Church during the past six months, pledging support in sus-
taining law might be recited in concert not only by our members and
others in the State of Illinois, but elsewhere throughout the country.

The work in the Canadian mission is going forward in a way that
cultivates the faith of our missionaries. I thought of them as the com-
bined choirs sang so beautifully this afternoon in reference to the
messengers who bring the gospel of peace. When major operations were
necessary our missionaries have gone to the operating table with calm-
ness and with a faith that has been surprising to the attendants. They
have been diligent in circulating the Book of Mormon. One elder
just wrote me that he put out forty-five copies in two days, and he
gave, to each of the state officials of one state a copy of the Book of
Mormon. The elders have been very free in presenting their testi-
mony of the Gospel to ministers, school teachers, and other leading
people. Hundreds of intelligent people in one province are said
to be now ready to listen to the Gospel if we had missionaries to bear
that word to them. Our missionaries are very few in number in that
province.

May the Lord bless us, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

ELDER J. GOLDEN KIMBALL

Of the First Council of Seventy

I often tell a story when called up to speak just as we are about
to close the meeting, which happens to me occasionally.

A little fellow was sick and he went to the doctor who was a
herbalist. The doctor gave him four herbs and told him to boil them
in a quart of water and drink it all. The little fellow said : "I can't.
I only hold a pint." I am wondering how much you people hold?

I have enjoyed the conference. I have not had much peace here
for a considerable length of time. The President has been calling people
up from all around me.

I trust, my brethren and sisters, that in the few words I speak
I may be able to impress the people of this Church with the fact, as
I am quite sure I have done in the past, that I am frank and honest
and sincere in my faith as a Latter-day Saint.

I believe all that has been revealed. I have no doubt whatsoever
of the truth of this work. I have gone out like others have done, and
have found God, and God has answered my prayers.- I have heard that
still small voice, and I have an assurance, and as much knowledge as has
been given to me by the influence of the Holy Spirit, that this is God's
work.

I pray the Lord to bless the people. I have no grievance. No man
can ever be treated better than I have been. If I have been corrected
once or twice it has done me more good than anything else that
has happened to me. The Lord bless you. Amen.

128

GENERAL CONFERENCE

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

From the way we have nearly always been crowded in the con-
ferences that have been held during the past ten years, at which I have
had the privilege of presiding, I am wondering if it would not be ad-
visable, as I am sure we dislike very much not to hear from all of the
General Authorities, to arrange to hold a conference meeting the night
before the usual conference sessions. I thought that inasmuch as two
of the brethren. Elders Reed Smoot and John A. Widtsoe, are not here,
there might be ten or fifteen minutes left for me. But in some way
when people start to talk on the Gospel they get- warmed up, and al-
though the clock is right in front of them, they very frequently do
not see it.

In my opening remarks I occupied ten minutes, in addition to
the time required to give the statistics of the Church, and I was in
hopes that I might have some little time in which to speak to you
before the close of the conference. I have made up my mind to take
it notwithstanding the usual time of closing has arrived.

THE TESTIMONY OF TWELVE WITNESSES

The theme of this conference has been the Book of Mormon. I
do not believe that in any court of justice in the world if a man was
being tried for murder and twelve reputable citizens testified of their
knowledge of the circumstances leading to the murder, and there was
no one who could testify against what they said, there would be a
failure to convict the man. We have the testimony of Joseph Smith
and the testimony of three witnesses to the effect that God gave them
a knowledge regarding the Book of Mormon, that an angel of God
declared from heaven that the book had been translated by the gift
and power of God. These men were Oliver Cowdery, David
Whitmer and Martin Harris. They left the Church, but to
the day of their death they maintained their testimony regarding the
declaration of the angel, and that they were commanded to bear witness
of the divinity of this book, and they did so. Eight men, some of whom
were excommunicated from the Church, maintained their testimony
that they had seen and handled the plates from which the Book of
Mormon was translated, and they remained true to that testimony to
the day of their death. The disbelief of all the world does not prove
that those men did not tell the truth, because there are no witnesses on
the other side.

A TRUE WITNESS FOR GOD

It has been said that the Book of Mormon has fraud written upon
every page of it. The Book of Mormon is in absolute harmony from
start to finish with other sacred scriptures. There is not a doctrine
taught in it that does not harmonize with the teachings of Jesus Christ.
There is not one single expression in the Book of Mormon that would
wound in the slightest degree the sensitiveness of any individual. There

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

129

is not a thing in it but what is for the benefit and uplift of mankind.
It is in every way a true witness for God, and it sustains the Bible
and is in harmony with the Bible. No group of men can write a
book of six or seven hundred pages that is a fraud and have it in
harmony in every particular with the scriptures that were given to us
by the prophets of God and by Jesus Christ and his Apostles.

A gentleman told me that he had read Joseph Smith's own story.
He said that no liar ever told such a story. No liar could write such a
book; and the evidences of the book's truthfulness are coming to light
day by day.

THE USE OF CEMENT

I have often said and desire to repeat here that when I was a
young unmarried man, another young man who had received a doctor's
degree ridiculed me for believing in the Book of Mormon. He said
he could point out two lies in that book. One was that the people
had built their homes out of cement and that they were very skilful
in the use of cement. He said there had never been found and never
would be found, a house built of cement by the ancient inhabitants
of this country, because the people in that early age knew nothing
about cement. He said that should be enough to make one disbelieve
the book. I said : "That does not affect my faith one particle. I read
the Book of Mormon prayerfully and supplicated God for a testimony
in my heart and soul of the divinity of it, and I have accepted it and
believe it with all my heart." I also said to him, "If my children do not
find cement houses, I expect that my grandchildren will." He said,
"Well, what is the good of talking with a fool like that?" Now, since
that time houses made of cement and massive structures of the same
material have been uncovered.

Not very far from the City of Mexico there is a monument two
hundred and ten feet high, built of cement, that was supposed to be a
big hill. My first counselor has stood on that monument. You could
put forty tabernacles like this one inside of it. It covers more than
ten acres of ground and is two and a half times higher than this
building. From the top of that monument one can see small mounds,
and as these mounds are being uncovered they are found to be won-
derfully built cement houses, with drain pipes of cement, showing
skill and ability, superior almost to anything we have today so far
as the use of cement is concerned.

THE VOICE OF THE SAVIOR

Another statement that this doctor made was this: that the voice
of man can only carry a few hundred feet, and yet the Book of
Mormon teaches that when Jesus Christ was resurrected and came to
this country he spoke to the people and his voice was heard all over
the land, not alone by the people that were near, but all over the land.
"That is a lie," said he, "and you know it." I said, "That is no lie
at all. Jesus Christ, under God, was the Creator of this earth, and

130

GENERAL CONFERENCE

if he had the power and ability to create the earth I believe that
he could arrange for his voice to- carry all over the world at one and the
same time."

The radio is doing- what? I read the other day that a song had
been heard nine thousand miles away, not only every word of it, but
every note. (There are several notes in every word.) We had four
letters from New Zealand or Australia, I have forgotten which, to the
effect that people there had heard perfectly the programs that had been
broadcast over the radio by the Martha Washington Candy Company.
In that program the announcement was made that if anybody in a
foreign land who heard the program would so indicate there would
be sent to him a pound box of candy, and four people wrote' for the
boxes of candy. It takes the sun eighteen and one half hours to travel
that far, yet the voice carried that distance as quickly as you can snap
your finger.

I said to this man : "The voice of the Savior could go all over the
world if he so arranged it." The radio has proven what I said. Faith
is a gift of God, and I thank God for the faith in and the knowledge
of the divinity of the Book of Mormon which I had in my youthful
days, and that these two alleged scientific facts, which are now known to
be fallacies, did not destroy my faith.

LISTENERS IN DISTANT PLACES

I rejoice in the wonderful time that we have had together here.
I want to request our people and any that are not of our faith who are
listening in distant places to what I am saying, to send a postal card
informing us of that fact. If there is a little gathering of a dozen or
more people in a home, or in a meeting-house, in any part of the
country from Canada to Mexico, listening over the radio to these
services, please send a postal card to the Bishop's Office telling how
many were listening to the services. And if there are any who are
not of our faith who are listening in we would appreciate it if they,
too. would notify us that they have heard the services. We would like
to know how many people have heard the testimonies that have been
borne during this conference, given by men who are devoting their lives
and all that is in them for the advancement of truth and the spread of
righteousness.

BLESSINGS INVOKED

I pray God to bless each and every soul on the face of the earth
that believes in God, and for those who do not, I pray that God may
help them to obtain a testimony that he lives, that he is the Father of
our spirits, that Jesus Christ is the Son of the Living God, the Re-
deemer of the world.

SHOULD LIVE THE GOSPEL

I hope and pray that the saints will ' live the Gospel of Jesus
Christ. I hope that they will listen to the teachings of the presidents

PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT

131

of stakes and bishops of wards. I want to say that we expect every
president of a stake and every bishop of a ward to teach the people the
truth. We want them to tell the people that they are expected to obey
the Word of Wisdom, to be honest tithe-payers, to remember the
covenants that they make in the temples of God, and not mutilate their
garments : that we expect them to quit playing cards ; and that we expect
them to do their duty as saints, and to preach the Gospel by living it.

May God help each and every one of us that has a testimony of
this Gospel to live it, is my earnest prayer. I pray God to bless
the Latter-day Saints and the honest the world over, and I do it in
humility and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, our Redeemer.
Amen.

An anthem, "Worthy the Lamb," was sung by the combined choirs.
The benediction was pronounced by Elder William R. Smith, Pres-
ident of the Woodruff Stake.

Conference adjourned for six months.

Professor Anthony C- Lund conducted the singing. Accompani-
ments and interludes were played on the great organ by Edward P.
Kimball, Tracy Y. Cannon, Alexander Schreiner, and Frank W. Asper.

Stenographic notes of the conference were taken by Frank W.
Otterstrom and Joseph Anderson.

Joseph Anderson,

Clerk of the Conference.

INDEX

Allred, Elder John G.
Authorities Present .

86
64

Authorities, Presentation of
Ballard, Elder Melvin J. . .

The present generation, 65— Corruption of morals brings destruc-
tion of faith, 65 — Methods of the adversary, 65 — The trials of
peace and prosperity, 66— Snares of the evil one, 66— A peculiar
people, 67— The single standard, 67— Protection through modesty,
68 — Pattern makers for the world, 68 — Marriage for a holy and
sacred purpose, 68 — Poverty not a ban, 69 — The crime of sexual
impurity, 69 — The wages of sin, 69 — Reward of the virtuous, 69 —
A worthy example, 70 — Requirements to weather the storm, 70.

Bennion, Elder Samuel 0 16

Callis, Elder Charles A : 23

Cannon, Elder Sylvester Q 93

Vital statistics known abroad, 93 — Extent of charity assistance,
93 — Fasting and Fast donations, 94 — The Church and social wel-
fare, 94 — Responsibility for those in need, 95 — Dangers of indis-
criminate giving, 95 — Family the basic unit, 95 — Care of orphans
and dependent children, 95 — Requirements for normal family life,
96 — Vocational training, 96 — Providing of employment, 97 —
Bishoprics, Relief Society, and Social service, 97— Development '
of industries, 98

Clawson, President Rudger 25

Witnesses who testify concerning God's work, 25 — The Bible as
a witness, 25 — The Book of Mormon, 26 — Ancient predictions
fulfilled, 27— The .third Witness, 28— The Pearl of Great Price,
28 — Witnesses whose testimonies agree, 28 — Individual testi-
mony, 29.

First Day, Morning Meeting 2

First Day, Afternoon Meeting 25

General Authorities Present 1

General Authorities of the Church 86

General Officers of the Church 86

General Auxiliary Officers of the Church . 87

Grant, President Heber J 2

Missionary work, 2 — Churdh expenditures, 2 — Seminaries versus
Church schools, 3 — Statistical and other reports compiled from
the Church records for the year 1928, 4 — Church Growth, 4 —
Social statistics, 5 — Changes in stake and mission officers since
last conference, $ — Mission president appointed, 5 — Church
institutes, 6 — Importance of religious training, 6 — Statement by
Coolidge, 7 — The value of the Gospel, 7.

Grant, President Heber J 16

Grant, President Heber J 62

Elder Rossiter's service in the mission field, 62.

134

GENERAL CONFERENCE

Grant, President Heber J 64

Speakers at conferences, 64.
Grant, President Heber J. 86

Presentation of General Authorities and Officers, 86.
Grant, President Heber J 88

Elder Joseph Wilford Booth, 88— Sister Martha Home Tingey, 88:
Grant, President Heber J 125

Insufficient time at conferences, 125.
Grant, President Heber J 128

The testimony of twelve witnesses, 128 — A true witness for God,

128 — The use of cement, 129 — The voice of the Savior, 129 —

Listeners in distant places, 130 — Blessings invoked, 130 — Should

live the Gospel, 130.

Hart, Elder Charles H 125

Ivins, President Anthony W 8

Protection from storm, 8 — Misrepresentation, 9 — One of the ob-
jections, 9 — His own argument, 10 — The use of steel, 10 — Animals
of ancient America, 11 — Fine pearls, 11 — Without knowledge of
the future, 12 — The goldsmith art, 12 — Millions in Gold, 13 —
Plates of gold, 13 — Not unreasonable, 14 — Familiarity with the
book required, 14 — The teachings of the Book of Mormon, 15 —

No definite solution, 15.

Jones, Elder Miles L ? 38

Kimball, Elder J. Golden 127

Lyman, Elder Richard R 76

What people desire to know, 76 — The lig'ht and the voice, 77 —
Effects of the vision, 77 — The spirit of America, 77 — The wisdom
of Franklin, 78 — The faith of Lincoln, 78 — The powers of heaven, ,
79 — Another modern instance, 79 — Visions of long ago, 79 — In

the tops of the mountains, 80 — The present spirit of peace, 80 —
"In the last days", 81.

McKay, Elder David 0 98

True religion, 98 — Wrong thinking, 98 — Unstable opinions, 99 —
Sinful influences, 100 — A sense of responsibility toward others.
100— Prayer, 101— Reverence, 102.

McMurrin, Elder Joseph W 106

Moyle, Elder James H 18

Nibley, President Charles W 89

The spirit of truth, 89 — The spirit of evil, 90 — Contending influ-
ences, 90 — If only to deceive, 90 — Grace being added to grace, 91 —
Intelligence — light and truth, 91 — In no other way, 92.

Officers and other Authorities present 1

Pond, Elder Noah S ' 35

Pratt, Elder Rey L 70

Richards, Elder George F ' 115

The Conference pamphlet, 115 — The importance of tithe paying,
116 — Gems of information, 116 — "A marvelous work and a won-
der", 117 — Appreciation of blessings, 117 — Diligence and faith-
fulness urged, 118.

Richards, Elder Stephen L 49

The law of tithing, 49 — The relationship of money and property
to Christianity, 50 — Money and myself, 50 — Test of faith is giving,

INDEX

135

50— Sovereignty of God, 50— Bought with a price, 51— Partnership
with God, 51— Payment of dues, 51— Thrift habits, 51— Economy,

51— Spiritual power, 52— Honesty, 52— Need of the tithe, 52— Use
of tithing funds, 52 — Enjoyment of tithe paying, 53— Monthly
payments,' 53 — Consecration, 53.

Roberts, Elder Brigham H 118

Rolapp, Elder Henry H 58

Rossiter, Elder Ernest C 60

Second Day, Morning Meeting 44

Second Day, Afternoon Meeting 64

Sloan, Elder William R 57

Smith, Elder George Albert 29

Perilous times, 30 — -Conservation advised, 30 — Consistency in our
lives, 30 — The things of the world, 31 — Evils that afflict mankind,
31 — Divine instruction, 31 — Duties of parents, 32 — Integrity and
industry important, 32 — Harmful literature, 32 — The safe course,

33 — Teaching in the home, 33 — Evils and designs in hearts of
conspiring men, 34 — Joy and blessings through righteous lives,

34 — Our Father's work, 34.

Smith, Elder Hyrum G 122

Our blessings, 122 — The blessings of Ephraim and Manasseh,

122 — The day of Ephraim, 123 — The Lord's promise unto Nephi,

123 — "Judah's remnant," 124 — The law of adoption, 124 — -Testi-
mony and blessing, 124.

Smith, Elder Joseph Fielding 54

A critical time, 54 — Ingratitude in times of prosperity, 54 — The
words of the Book of Mormon, 54 — All things obedient except
man, 55 — Keep the commandments, 55 — Necessity of constant in-
structions and guidance, 56 — Blessings contingent upon obe-
dience, 56.

Talmage, Elder James E 44

As to Book of Mormon lands, 44 — How to know for one's self,
45 — The book of Isaiah and the Book of Mormon, 45 — Book of
Isaiah complete before 600 B. C, 46 — Integrity of Isaiah affirmed
by the resurrected Lord, 46 — Students and teachers, be consistent
and true to your testimony, 47 — Differences in style of writing,
47 — Be true to your testimony, 48 — Rejection of prophecy, 49.

Third Day, Morning Meeting 89

Third Day, Afternoon Meeting 109

Wells, Elder Rulon S 102

Whitney, Elder Orson F 109

Differences of viewpoint, 109— Mother and daughter, 109— Elder
Kimball's pro and con, 110— The youth of Zion, 110— A word for
the wayward, 110 — A precious promise, 110 — A scene from Shake-
speare, 111— A colonizing proposition, 111 — How made, 112 — As
Dickens saw them, 112— An English heroine, 112— "I cannot make
the sacrifice", 113 — The impelling motives, 114.

Woodruff, Elder Elias S 62

Young, Elder Levi Edgar • 81

Can you answer all of the questions that are put to you about
the Church?

THE OFFICIAL

History of the Church

Will answer many of these questions for you.

IN SIX LARGE VOLUMES

Compiled by the Church Historians and published by the Church.
Completing the First Period.

"The History of the Prophet Joseph Smith," with introduction and
notes by B. H. Roberts.

Every Association, Sunday School, Quorum and Private Library
should have a set.

Cloth— Embossed, per vol , $2.50 Postpaid

Half Morocco— Gilt Top, per vol _ 3.50 "

Full Morocco — Full Gilt Edge, per vol — 6.00 "

The above work is suggested as reference in connection with the
study of Church History in all of the activities of the Church.

For the reader who does not want this exhaustive history, we rec-
ommend the one volume book entitled

Essentials in Church History

BY JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH

"As the title of the book implies, the vital and essential points of
history and doctrine have been selected, and as far as possible arranged
in chronological order."

PRICE, CLOTH BINDING-$1.75

Deseret Book Company

44 EAST ON SOUTH TEMPLE
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH P. O. BOX 1793

WHENCE THIS GOSPEL WE TEACH?

Read:

"Restoration of the Gospel"

BY OSBORNE J. P. WIDTSOE

"This book prepared by Elder Osborne J. P. Widtsoe, dealing wita
the important subject of the Restoration of the everlasting Gospel,
should be read and its contents carefully considered by those who are
seeking after truth." Joseph F. Smith, Jr.

PRICE $1.00 POSTPAID

A Book You Have Been Waiting For
An India Paper Edition of

JESUS THE CHRIST

THAT EXCELLENT TREATISE BY
ELDER JAMES E. TALMAGE

Just Fits The Pocket
An Excellent Present For The Missionary Friend

PRICE $5.00 POSTPAID

ARTICLES OF FAITH

BY JAMES E. TALMAGE

A consideration of the principal doctrines of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints.

This book will be helpful to all who desire a clear and concr|ete
exposition of tihe beliefs and attitudes of the "Mormons."

LIBRARY EDITION. BLUE CLOTH. $1.00 POSTPAID
MISSIONARY EDITION. BROWN CLOTH. 50c POSTPAID

Deseret Book Company

44 EAST ON SOUTH TEMPLE

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH

P. O. BOX 1793

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